Opening as the Mecca in August
1933, the Mecca was designed by James McKissack for Smith and Welsh. It
originally seated 1,620. In January 1950 it was sold to the Singleton
circuit, and renamed Vogue.
The Vogue remained a cinema until April 1968, when it went over to full time bingo. The opening of a modern
purpose-built bingo hall nearby eventually saw the end of bingo at the
Vogue. The building has sat derelict since the late 1990s, but appears
to have been kept secure and watertight.
In January 2005, the cracks in the exterior rendering were repaired, the canopy removed, new roller shutters were fitted over all the ground floor doors and windows, and futher repairs have been made to the roof. Unfortunately, as can be seen from the latest picture above, both the sandstone portions and faience tiles have been painted over as well. The condition of the interior is unknown. A side view of the auditorium exterior, showing the patched roof, can be seen here. An exterior from 1982 can be seen here, courtesy Chris Doak. Pictures of the exterior from February 2002, prior to the recent repairs and repainting, are available here, here and here. |