From the control room with its unique collection of mainly home-made sound recording and film equipment, Denzil peers into the adjoining studio/theatrette in this publicity shot circa 1960.
The control room and theatrette building was contructed in the Belgrave Road backyard by Denzil with help from his inlaws. They poured the concrete, built the walls and the roof, lined the building, painted and wired it. In this age of strict building regulations such an exercise would be impossible — but in that post-war era it was a matter of doing it yourself with minimal resources.
Relatives and friends or even the neighbourhood kids would take their place on the wooden seats while the organ music (usually from an Aubrey Whelan or Laurie Wilson record) played in the background. Then the house lights would dim and the motorised curtains, bathed in red and green proscenium lighting, would part as the organ music faded and the cinema show began. Always the showman, Denzil’s film screenings were slick and well-rehearsed.
