Glasgow cinema The Vogue saved from being demolished

Read more: First look of new plans for under threat Vogue Cinema in Glasgow
 
Campaigners who had been fighting to save the cinema welcomed the decision as good news for the community. The architect Alan Dunlop, a vocal critic of the demolition plans, said he was delighted and said listed status was the first step to restoring the building. Glasgow MSP Paul Sweeney said he believed a compromise was now possible in which the façade could be integrated into a new-build development.
 
The review and public consultation into the Vogue by HES began earlier this year after the owners started demolition work on the roof. Glasgow City Council served a building preservation order in January and made an application for it to be listed. HES has now been listed as Category C, which protects buildings of local interest.

In its judgement, HES says the Vogue is notable as a rare surviving example of modern-classical cinema design and meets the criteria of special architectural or historic interest. Designed by the architect James McKissack, it opened in August 1933 and was created to serve people moving into the newly established Possilpark housing estate and workers at the nearby Saracen foundry.
 
HES noted in their report that McKissack was one of Scotland’s leading cinema designers praised for producing exceptional designs and responsible for around 30 purpose-built cinemas across Scotland. It also noted that of the thousands of cinemas built during the rapid expansion of the 1930s, the Vogue was one of a small number remaining and said it was an architectural landmark in an area that has seen a lot of change and demolition.

Read more: Vogue Cinema: This is how you do restoration
 
HES says in its report that most of the responses it received to its public consultation were supportive of listing and that the recurring themes were that the cinema was the only building of character and architectural worth in the area and that it had social and community value. One member of the public who took part said they were angry that “Glasgow has allowed another piece of working class history to deliberately rot to the point of disappearance”.
 
Mr Dunlop, who has produced plans showing how the building could be developed, said the listing was good news for the Possilpark community.
 
“The area has been devastated in the last 20 years, that’s the truth of it,” he said. “So saving a building of such character and such note is great. It was the last significant building of character and distinction left in that area of north Glasgow.”
 
He said the Category C listing meant there was an opportunity to work with the building and keep the best of it.
 
“There’s a process you have to go through before any change and that would involve HES,” he said, “As an architect with 40 years’ experience of building major projects in Glasgow, including working with listed buildings and on conservation projects, I know the Vogue Cinema can be and should be saved. Achieving listed status is the first step on the road to its restoration and bringing it back to life.”

Alan Dunlop has proposed how the site might look with the front of the cinema preserved (Image: Alan Dunlop has proposed how the site might look with the front of the cinema preserved)
 
Mr Sweeney said he was now hopeful of a positive future for the building, which was converted into a bingo hall in the 60s before closing in the 1990s. The entrance section of the ground floor was used as a retail premises until 2021.
 
He said he had met with Allied Vehicles who had explained their expansion plans involving the site. Mr Sweeney said a balance now had to be struck between retaining Glasgow's architectural heritage and promoting economic development.
 
He said: "With the listing now in place, I think there’s an opportunity to reach a compromise where the main façade is retained and integrated into the new-build development. Alan Dunlop has prepared two concept drawings that show how this can be achieved. The Ascot in Anniesland, Odeon on Renfield Street and Toledo in Muirend are all excellent examples of this approach.
 
“Grant funds are also an option to help cover any extra cost to retain the public frontage of a listed building, especially in a deprived area. I’m keen to work with the owner to explore that option further.”

Read more: An abandoned path that says it all about the ruin of Glasgow
 
Mr Sweeney said the current roofless state of the building was unsustainable and he hoped revised plans could be drawn up quickly. “This would enable the growth of Allied Vehicles, which is an advanced manufacturing company of strategic importance in the north of Glasgow, whilst retaining the main façade of the historic cinema to Balmore Road."
 
The details of the listing by HES state that the front and side sections of the building will now be protected but that the interior and roof structure are not of special interest. The interior has been stripped out to its bare walls and there are no surviving fixtures and fittings.
 
Allied Vehicles, who were approached for comment, can appeal the decision to the Scottish Government within six months.
 
Glasgow City Council said they had been notified of the listing and noted the decision.  The cinema was originally proposed for listing by local campaigners but the council was then required to request a new listing assessment after issuing the building preservation order earlier this year.