Shropshire Star

Cinema expert Trevor shines light on film projector

Cinema expert Trevor Harris of Oswestry has delved into an old catalogue to shine light on two rare cinema projectors uncovered at the former Shelton Hospital in Shrewsbury.

Published
Andy Rhodes (red hat) with one of the ancient projects as volunteers from the Projected Picture Trust prepare to take it away.

Shropshire Homes, which is working on the building, came across a pair of Gaumont Kalee GK18 projectors dating back to 1948 which had been used to screen films at the psychiatric hospital during the 1950s and 1960s.

They were discovered while the firm was renovating the Grand Hall.

Trevor said: "The 18s were used in small cinemas and hospitals, and so on, but the larger 20/21 outfits were usually installed in Gaumonts, then Odeons.

"The stand in your photo is not usually used on the 18 outfit, as this is the older type 'Bell' stand used on earlier machines."

Trevor sent in extracts from his 1951 catalogue with Gaumont Kalee projectors.

"As you can see from the pictures, most of this is interchangeable with various sound heads and arc lamps.

"We put Kalee 21s into the Regal (the Oswestry cinema Trevor ran). These Kalee projectors were made in Leeds by Albert Kershaw, if I remember correctly, and I was brought up on them.

"They were marketed as Gaumont-Kalee, which was a trading name of Rank. They made everything to do with cinema and theatre use."

According to Trevor's catalogue, the Gaumont-Kalee 18 was of the same high standard of reliability as its larger counterparts, "but within a price field that will instantly appeal to the smallest cinemas."

It was priced from £632 and 10 shillings.

Andrew Rhodes, Shropshire Homes' commercial manager, said: "We found the projectors while renovating the Grand Hall. They were in an adjoining room, with two holes in the wall so that they could project into the hall when it was being used as a cinema.

“We realised that we’d found something far too important to put in a skip, so we contacted the Projected Picture Trust who were delighted to hear about our find and came to collect them immediately.”

The historic buildings and parkland of the former Shelton Hospital are being redeveloped in a scheme being called Leighton Park, which will comprise 159 houses and apartments.