Haddonstone Adds The Crowning Glory To The Historic Grade II* Former Granada Cinema

Architectural cast stone specialist Haddonstone, has restored key stonework features on the newly restored former Granada Cinema Building, recently reopened in May 2025 and operating as Soho Theatre Walthamstow. Since the opening of the original Victoria Music Hall in 1887, the site has been home to a variety of entertainment genres.

Soho Theatre Walthamstow - photography courtesy of David Levene

In 1930, following a complete development, the Music Hall Granada Chain Cinema Variety opened as a cinema and performance venue which, during the 1950s and 1960s, hosted stars of the moment including Buddy Holly, The Beatles, The Who and The Rolling Stones. The site was granted Grade II*-listed status by English Heritage in 1987 and added to the Theatres-at-Risk Register 2015.

Waltham Forest Council purchased the building in 2019, a legacy commitment as the Mayor of London's first Borough of Culture. The council led an originally budgeted £30m for the restoration of this historic venue in Walthamstow. It has transformed the building into a landmark cultural multi-use venue with four units, one of which is operated by Soho Theatre Walthamstow,, a vibrant 960-seat live performance space. 

Returning the building to its former glory while introducing modern cultural features; it offers a variety of live performances, including comedy, theatre and music, along with a host of community-focused events.

The venue also features three bars, a restaurant, and studio spaces, enriching the local community's cultural landscape. The collaboration, led by Waltham Forest Council, with Historic England, conservation specialists, experts and Soho Theatre ensures that the space serves as a hub for both local residents and visitors.

With a Historic England's Building at Risk Repairs Grant in place, Haddonstone's expertise was called upon to preserve and restore key architectural features; the experts supplied bespoke string courses, cornices, and coping to the Dutch gable of the building. A new motif was created to reflect the original scroll detail of the gable and all the stonework was crafted from wet-cast limestone in Portland colour, ensuring a  seamless blend of new and historic materials.

The need to preserve historical accuracy while adapting the building for today, required careful consideration and collaboration. The use of cast stone was integral in overcoming these challenges, allowing Haddonstone to replicate the ornate detailing of the original architecture and blend it with new structural elements.

The new scroll motif after casting: and once installed on the Dutch gable of the building

The project's success was a testament to the skillful integration of traditional craftsmanship and modern restoration techniques, ensuring that this beloved heritage landmark will continue to serve the community for many years to come.

Cllr Rosalind Doré, Cabinet member for Libraries, Culture and Sports and Leisure said: "We are delighted to announce the revival of our iconic venue, which embodies our vision from Waltham Forest as a vibrant ‘cultural neighbourhood'. This investment not only enriches our community but also strengthens our commitment to creating an economy that benefits everyone."

"As part of the London Borough of Culture 2019 legacy, we are dedicated to placing culture at the heart of our borough, enhancing the local evening and night-time economy while supporting our businesses and residents." For further information, call 01604 770711 or visit www.haddonstone.com

Visitor Access Upgraded With TORMAX Automatic Entrance

Swaffham Museum is an independent social history museum providing a wealth of information about the locality. Creating disabled access into the building, TORMAX was recently contracted to install an automatic telescopic sliding door, maximising the available pass-through distance within the limited available space.

"We wanted to encourage passers-by to come in and explore the Museum”, explains Tim Lynch, from the Museum. “The new glass sliding door creates an effective entrance lobby, allowing us to leave the outer door open so that people can easily see inside. It also makes the access much more user-friendly and welcoming to everyone, especially for less-able visitors and those with buggies.”

Delivering smooth operation and exceptional reliability, the entrance is powered by the in-house designed, TORMAX iMotion 2202.A door drive. Situated in the original Town Hall building that dates back to 1810, the Swaffham Museum opened in 1986 and features five local history and geology exhibitions. Perhaps the most famous local hero who is celebrated in the Egyptology room is Howard Carter, the archaeologist who discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922.

Being an historic building, Swaffham Museum needed to maintain the existing external entrance, as well as a set of internal wooden folding doors which created a lobby area. However, the folding doors were not very user-friendly and also created a visual barrier to potential visitors walking past in the street.

TORMAX was able to install an elegant automatic sliding door within the existing set of folding doors, maintaining the heritage feature whilst improving accessibility for all visitors. Aesthetically unobtrusive the iMotion 2202.A door drive combines reliable AC motor technology with a state of the art microprocessor control system in a slender guide track with an installation height of only 100mm. www.tormax.co.uk

F. Ball Delivers Showroom Finish

Fitters from flooring retailer Carpets R Us, in Taunton, used F. Ball and Co. Ltd.’s Stopgap 1600 fast-drying, fibre-reinforced smoothing compound to encapsulate retrofitted water-fed underfloor heating boards as part of a textbook flooring installation in their own showroom.

After applying F. Ball’s Stopgap P131 primer over the system to promote the application characteristics of the smoothing compound, Stopgap 1600 was applied over the 90m2 cement board system affixed to the concrete subfloor. The product is formulated especially for use over underfloor heating systems and can be applied between 3 - 40mm thick to encapsulate electrical wired or water-fed systems installed over internal subfloors as part of new build or refurbishment projects in both domestic and commercial environments.

It is suitable for use over a wide range of absorbent and non-absorbent subfloors, walk-on hard from three hours after application and ready to receive floorcoverings in as little as 12 hours. F. Ball technical service officers recommend allowing 5-35mm of a smoothing compound above retrofit electrical wired or water-fed underfloor heating systems, depending on the type of system being installed (less for electrical wired systems) and the manufacturer’s instructions.

Once the smoothing compound had dried, fitters again primed the surface with Stopgap P131 primer before capping with a layer of F. Ball’s Stopgap 1200 high-performance smoothing compound, which is walk-on hard in as little as 60 minutes after application and ready to receive floorcoverings from four hours. The showroom installation was completed with the installation of Gradus carpet tiles and Moduleo LVTs, showcasing the standard of workmanship that Carpets R Us customers can expect in their own homes.

Commenting on the project, Henry Griffin, Carpets R Us, said: “As well as using F. Ball yellow bucket adhesives, we exclusively use F. Ball smoothing compounds. This was the first time we’ve used Stopgap 1600 over a cement board water-fed underfloor heating system, and it is the perfect product for the job. We’re grateful to F. Ball’s Technical Service Department for advising on subfloor preparation, including priming and the minimum thickness of smoothing compound. This meant that everything went smoothly.” www.f-ball.com