Hippodrome / Coventry Theatre / Apollo show archive

n attempt to list all the shows ever performed at our Hippodromes, beginning with the temporary circus buildings, which from 1884 were specially erected on Pool Meadow for each visit - then, in 1903, to the first permanent, but short-lived, 'Tin' Hippodrome on the Priory Street side of Pool Meadow facing the old Swimming Baths. The popularity of these shows created the demand for a theatre worthy of our city, and so in 1906 began the construction in Hales Street, next to Swanswell Gate, of what we now regard as the Old Hippodrome.
Again, the success of this theatre meant that barely three decades later a greater capacity was required, and so we come to our lovely art-deco New Hippodrome in Hales Street, once known as the Showplace of the Midlands. Opening on the 1st November 1937, it was renamed Coventry Theatre in 1955, then from 1979 became The Apollo, giving its final performance in June 1985. After a short spell as a bingo hall it was eventually realised that such a building could not be put to any practical use, so, sadly, it was demolished in 2002. If anyone still has any tickets or programmes and would like to see them used to illustrate a show, please contact me.

1884 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985

Date(s)	Show	Notes
1934	Old Hippodrome, Hales Street
Mon 8th Jan until Sat 13th Jan 1934	Chapman's Great Continental Zoo-Circus	Lions! Polar Bears! Elephants! Tigers! Clowns! Clowns! Clowns!
Mon 15th Jan until Sat 20th Jan 1934	Crazy Show	The second edition of the London Palladium show.
Mon 22nd Jan until Sat 27th Jan 1934	Big Variety Programme	Including the 'Stars of the Future' contest, with £50 cash prizes. Including Norman Long, Sam Mayo and Betty Fields.
Mon 29th Jan until Sat 3rd Feb 1934	Queenie May & Her Gang	New revue, with Dan Young and James Hunter.
Mon 5th Feb until Sat 10th Feb 1934	The Quaker Girl	By the Coventry Amateur Operatic Society.
Mon 12th Feb until Sat 17th Feb 1934	So This Is Maskelyne	Mystery comedy revue, with a great crazy auction.
Mon 19th Feb until Sat 24th Feb 1934	Alexander & Mose	Plus, Billy Bennett, The Charladies, The New Tryx Sisters, and more variety.
Mon 26th Feb until Sat 3rd Mar 1934	George, Gertie & Ted	New comedy revue with George Elliott, Gertie Gitana & Ted Ray
Mon 5th Mar until Sat 10th Mar 1934	The Student Prince	'The greatest musical success of the present decade'.
Mon 12th Mar until Sat 17th Mar 1934	Garner, Wolf, & Hakins	American comedy, with Jack Egan and Rosemarie. Plus Robb Wilton, and more.
Mon 19th Mar until Sat 24th Mar 1934	Smith's Wives	Farce, starring comedian, Ernie Lotinga.
Mon 26th Mar until Sat 31st Mar 1934	Sandy Powell's Road Show	Variety, with The Act Superb, Roy Jefferies, Billy Matchett, Florence Irving, and many others.
Mon 2nd Apr until Sat 7th Apr 1934	Paris Fantaisie	Non-stop French revue, direct from its London run.
Mon 9th Apr until Sat 14th Apr 1934	Layton & Johnstone	Plus, Tex McLeod and Jean Kennedy.
Mon 16th Apr until Sat 21st Apr 1934	Ca C'est Paris	'The greatest French revue of all time'.
Mon 23rd Apr until Sat 28th Apr 1934	Mrs. Jack Hylton and her Boys	Plus, Eddie Pola's BBC success' America Calling'.
Mon 30th Apr until Sat 5th May 1934	Beauty On Parade	Scintillating new revue with Joey Porter and Henry Lytton Jnr.
Mon 7th May until Sat 12th May 1934	The Desert Song	Musical, with Ivan Wilmot as the 'Red Shadow'.
Mon 14th May until Sat 19th May 1934	This Way Please	Musical revue, with Nat Mills and Bobbie.
Mon 21st May until Sat 26th May 1934	Women of the World	Revue, starring international star Janice Hart, and 60 artistes.
Mon 28th May until Sat 2nd Jun 1934	Step By Step	Revue, with Stanford & Taylor, The 3 Rascals & Paul Rupert.
Mon 4th Jun until Sat 9th Jun 1934	The Show's The Thing	Revue, with Peter Fannan and The Leg Theory Girls.
Mon 11th Jun until Sat 16th Jun 1934	Will Hay	In a new episode of St. Michael's. Plus, Al & Bob Harvey, Lucille Benstead, and many more. (Will Hay stood in for Louis Armstrong, who was indisposed with a swollen lip.)
Mon 18th Jun until Sat 23rd Jun 1934	Razzle	Swift, smart and sophisticated revue, with Len Jackson and his Young Ladies.
Mon 25th Jun until Sat 30th Jun 1934	Stepping Out	Comedy revue, with Joe Poynton and a large cast.
Mon 2nd Jul until Sat 7th Jul 1934	Une Nuit A Paris (One Night In Paris)	French revue, with Hilda Leonard, Alan Bailey and Jack Clifford.
Mon 9th Jul until Sat 14th Jul 1934	Howzat	'A revue with a theme', starring Scott Sanders, Walter Niblo and Edna Cecil.
Mon 16th Jul until Sat 21st Jul 1934	Les Punchinellos	Written, staged and produced by Frank E. Franks.
Mon 23rd Jul until Sat 28th Jul 1934	11.30 Saturday Night	With Teddy Morris and his Boys, Joe Stein, Our Girls, and more.
Mon 30th Jul until Sat 4th Aug 1934	Samples of 1934	Comedy, featuring Manny & Roberts.
Mon 6th Aug until Sat 11th Aug 1934	Mr. Cinders	Special holiday musical show.
Mon 13th Aug until Sat 18th Aug 1934	Alf's Button	Hilarious musical farce, with Jerry Verno.
Mon 20th Aug until Sat 25th Aug 1934	Meet Us To-Night	New revue - 'Very swift, extremely smart - and a wee bit saucy.'
Mon 27th Aug until Sat 1st Sep 1934	Teddy Brown	The world's greatest xylophonist. Plus, Charlie Higgins, Eddie Windsor, Gaston & Andree, and many others.
Mon 3rd Sep until Sat 8th Sep 1934	Beer Is Best	Unusual revue, starring ex-Arsenal and England football centre-forward, Harold Walden.
Mon 10th Sep until Sat 15th Sep 1934	The Kind Of Show That Father Used To See	Old time music hall, with Charles Austin, and large cast.
Mon 17th Sep until Sat 22nd Sep 1934	Here We Go Round	Revue, starring George Clarke.
Mon 24th Sep until Sat 29th Sep 1934	Paris En Fete	French show, with Sid Field, Jane Ayr and Eddie Leslie.
Mon 1st Oct until Sat 6th Oct 1934	See You To-Night	Roy Broadhead revue, starring Jennie Howard.
Mon 8th Oct until Sat 13th Oct 1934	The Golden West	'A rollicking revue of the great open spaces'.
Mon 15th Oct until Sat 20th Oct 1934	Ladies Night	Musical comedy, with Dulcie Davenport & Jack Williams.
Mon 22nd Oct until Sat 27th Oct 1934	Plaisirs de la Nuit	French revue, with Tom Gamble.
Mon 29th Oct until Sat 3rd Nov 1934	Sporting Love	Musical comedy, still running at the Gaiety Theatre, London.
Mon 5th Nov until Sat 10th Nov 1934	Nice Goings On	Musical farce, with Leslie Henson.
Mon 12th Nov until Sat 17th Nov 1934	Variety	With Hughie Green and his Gang, plus, Six Zio Girls, Kafka Stanley & Mae Four, and many more.
Mon 19th Nov until Sat 24th Nov 1934	Albert Sandler	The celebrated violinist. Plus, Six Zio Girls, Tom D. Newell, Vine Moore & Nevard, and others.
Mon 26th Nov until Sat 1st Dec 1934	Herschel Henlere	The mirthful music master. Plus, 10 Gordon Ray Girls, The 5 Magnets, and many more.
Mon 3rd Dec until Sat 8th Dec 1934	Macari and his Dutch Accordion Band	More variety, with 10 Gordon Ray Girls, Randolph Sutton, Wal Langtry, and others.
Mon 10th Dec until Sat 15th Dec 1934	London Scandals	New revue, featuring Sam Mayo and Stanelli.
Mon 17th Dec until Sat 22nd Dec 1934	West End Scandals	Starring Tommy Trinder and Henry Lytton Jnr.
Wed 26th Dec 1934 until Sat 12th Jan 1935	Aladdin	Pantomime produced specially for Coventry, once nightly at 7.

Prev year: 1933Showing 1934Next year: 1935

Also of interest might be A short history of Coventry's Theatres and Cinemas, by Bill Birch.

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Hippodrome / Coventry Theatre / Apollo show archive

1934

Old Hippodrome, Hales Street