In 1954, Messrs Londy and Kallos built the new Bay Theatre at Scarborough.
It opened on the 2nd December 1954 with Paramount’s Knock on Wood, starring Danny Kaye and Mai Zetterling, followed by Paramount’s Houdini with Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh on December 3rd and 4th, supported by Fred MacMurray in Republic’s Fair Wind to Java.
Photos from our book The Pictorial History Of Redcliffe 1950s-90s.
At this time the cinema had the largest screen in the region, and the phenomenon of the Old Ghost of an old sea dog who is reputed to have often appeared from behind the screen and settled to sit in the front rows of the theatre.
9th December 1954 Redcliffe Herald:
An advert from the Redcliffe Herald, featuring the movies playing at the Bay Theatre on Saturday February 4th 1961:
Beloved Infidel is a 1959 DeLuxe Color biographical drama film made by 20th Century Fox in CinemaScope and based on the relationship of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Sheilah Graham.
There's Always a Thursday is a 1957 British crime film directed by Charles Saunders and starring Charles Victor, Jill Ireland, Lloyd Lamble and Robert Raglan.[1] Much of the film was shot at Southall Studios.
In 1969 the theatre was owned by a Mr Morton, and on May 9th, Camelot was shown, the star-studded Warner Brothers musical.
Camelot is a 1967 American musical fantasy drama film directed by Joshua Logan and written by Alan Jay Lerner, based on the 1960 stage musical of the same name by Lerner and Frederick Loewe. It stars Richard Harris as King Arthur, Vanessa Redgrave as Guenevere, and Franco Nero as Lancelot.
This was a gala premiere in aid of the Queensland Spastic Welfare League....admission $1 on premiere Night only. The official opening was performed by the Mayor of Redcliffe Alderman Cecil Kroll. The RSL and Municipal Band heralded the arrival of patrons and they were greeted by the current Miss Peninsula, Miss Robyn Roberts and by entrants in this year’s Miss Australia Quest who acted as usherettes.
An advert from the Redcliffe Herald, featuring the movies playing at the Bay Theatre on Saturday September 24th 1975:
The Box is a 1975 Australian film, based on the Australian soap operaThe Box and featuring much of the same cast. The film also features Graham Kennedy playing himself, and Cornelia Frances in the key role of Dr. S. M. Winter, an efficiency expert brought in to improve operations at UCV-12. Robin Ramsay played Winter's assistant Bruce. Marilyn Vernon as starlet Ingrid O'Toole, and Leonie Bradley, credited as "Nature Girl", provide nude glimpses, as does the returning Belinda Giblin. Keith Lee played Price, and Robert Forza appeared as Channel 12's clapper loader.
Werewolves on Wheels is a 1971 American exploitation film directed by Michel Levesque and starring Stephen Oliver, D.J. Anderson, and Deuce Barry. It blends two genres: the outlaw biker film and the traditional horror film.
Redcliffe Herald 21st July 1976:
"The proprietor of the Bay Theatre in Scarborough, Leon Bohlsen, is seen at left with the new projector he has just installed at the theatre. His sophisticated and streamlined machine shows how mechanical genius has progressed since the days of the old cinematograph shown in the picture to the right. This obsolete "gadget" can be inspected at the historical society's museum at Suttons Beach".
The theatre has had varied uses since, being a Blue light disco in the 1970s, a church and then the iconic Scarborough Fair Art Gallery from 1994 to 2004.
The building was demolished in 2022.
A page and photos from our book The Pictorial History Of Redcliffe 1950s-90s.