The Picture House

Terracotta faience on the old Picture House cinema on Oxford Street in Manchester. The lower frontage has been disfigured by conversion to a Macdonalds eatery.

Naylor and Sale were the architects of what was one of the first purpose-built cinemas in the city centre. It was opened in 1911 by the Provincial Cinematography Theatres Company who called all their nationwide circuit of cinemas 'Picture House'. The PCT circuit was taken over by Gaumont in 1929 but this Picture House was taken over by an independent two years later and it was renamed the New Oxford. In 1960 it was taken over by Rank and it was closed in 1980.