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.

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1951	New Hippodrome, Hales Street
Date(s)	Show	Notes	Images
Mon 19th Mar until Sat 24th Mar 1951	Tobacco Road	"Adults only" Play based on Erskine Cadwell's novel.
Mon 26th Mar until Sat 31st Mar 1951	All-Star Variety Show	Starring Donald Peers.
Mon 2nd Apr until Sat 7th Apr 1951	The Student Prince	Musical, Starring Lillian Stewart, John Graham, Jimmy Godden and Andrew Waterson.
Mon 9th Apr until Sat 21st Apr 1951	Annie Get Your Gun	With Company of 70 artistes.
Sun 15th Apr 1951	National Dance Band Championship	"Warwickshire".
Mon 23rd Apr until Sat 5th May 1951	International Ballet	including Swan Lake, Coppelia and other ballets.
Mon 7th May until Sat 12th May 1951	Nellie Lutcher and Her Rhythm	With Jimmy Wheeler, Shirley, Sharon & Wanda, and others.
Mon 14th May until Sat 19th May 1951	Billy Cotton and his Band	With full supporting company.
Mon 21st May until Sat 2nd Jun 1951	Brigadoon	Musical Play.
Mon 4th Jun until Sat 9th Jun 1951	Frankie Howerd	With The Florida Trio and The Golliwog, and others.
Mon 11th Jun until Sat 16th Jun 1951	Frou Frou	Play, starring Jean Kent, with Donald Sinden.
Mon 18th Jun until Sat 23rd Jun 1951	The Winter's Tale	Shakespeare Play.
Mon 25th Jun until Sat 7th Jul 1951	Bless The Bride	Musical, with Edmund Goffron and Valerie Lawson.
Mon 9th Jul until Sat 14th Jul 1951	Peter Brough & Archie Andrews	Radio Favourites, with supporting cast.
Mon 16th Jul until Sat 21st Jul 1951	Rose Murphy	Famous Chee-Chee Girl, with many others.
Sat 21st Jul 1951	Annual Dance Recital	By the Orme School of Dancing, raising funds for Dr. Barnardo's Homes.
Mon 23rd Jul until Sat 28th Jul 1951	Variety Show	With Ethel Revnell, Bonar Colleano and may others.
Mon 30th Jul until Sat 4th Aug 1951	Derek Roy	Famous BBC Comedian, with others.
Mon 6th Aug until Sat 18th Aug 1951	Starlight Roof	Musical, with Jimmy Jewel and Ben Warriss.
Mon 20th Aug until Sat 25th Aug 1951	Highlights of Radio	With Max Wall, Lester Ferguson and Semprini.
Mon 27th Aug until Sat 1st Sep 1951	Jack Warner	Star of Stage, Radio and Screen, with Billy Russell and Jack Daly.
Tue 4th Sep until Sat 15th Sep 1951	Zip Goes A Million	World Premiere, starring George Formby.
Mon 17th Sep until Sat 22nd Sep 1951	Worm's Eye View	Comedy, with Jack Hobbs and Frank Pettitt.
Sun 23rd Sep 1951	London Symphony Orchestra	With the Coventry Philharmonic Choir.
Mon 24th Sep until Sat 29th Sep 1951	Lilac Time	With John Lewis, Arthur Fear, Julia Bretton and Sydney Arnold.
Mon 1st Oct until Sat 6th Oct 1951	Pygmalion	Starring Margaret Lockwood.
Mon 8th Oct until Sat 13th Oct 1951	Original Ballet Russe	Performing Aurora's Wedding, Paganini, Graduation Ball, Coq D'Or, Carnaval, and Prince Igor.
Mon 15th Oct until Sat 27th Oct 1951	Festival On Ice	Tom Arnold's Production.
Mon 29th Oct until Sat 3rd Nov 1951	Colossal Birthday Week Show	All star cast, including Norman Evans, Webster Booth and Anne Ziegler, and the Beverley Sisters.
Mon 5th Nov until Sat 17th Nov 1951	Folies Bergere Revue	The Real French Show from Paris.
Mon 19th Nov until Sat 24th Nov 1951	Rose Marie	By the Coventry Amateur Operatic Society.
Mon 26th Nov until Sat 1st Dec 1951	The Maid Of The Mountains	With Frederick Morant, Diana Stewart and company of 60 artistes.
Mon 3rd Dec until Sat 8th Dec 1951	Dear Miss Phoebe	With the London Company.
Mon 10th Dec until Sat 15th Dec 1951	Billy Cotton and his Band	With supporting Variety acts. (Theatre closed the following week for pantomime rehearsals.)
Mon 24th Dec 1951 until Sat 15th Mar 1952	Babes In The Wood	With All-Star cast, including Reg Dixon, Dick Henderson Junior, Sonnie Hale, and others.

Prev year: 1950   Next year: 1952

1884 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 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

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