A THEATRE which has been used as a place of worship for 35 years is to become an entertainment venue again after being bought by Arts University Bournemouth (AUB).

The university has acquired the former Palace Court Theatre – later the Playhouse Theatre and Galaxy Cinema – on the town’s Hinton Road.

Bournemouth’s last surviving 1930s art deco theatre will be restored as a teaching space with performance venue, including a 400-seat auditorium, interval bar and rehearsal space.

AUB vice-chancellor Professor Paul Gough said: “AUB’s acquisition of Palace Court Theatre firmly brings to life our ambitions to invest in the local area, particularly through key assets that contribute to business creativity, arts provision and skills development.

“AUB’s Palace Court Theatre project further demonstrates the university’s ongoing efforts to help protect, preserve and enhance the UK’s highly respected arts and culture industry, which brings more than £10billion to the UK economy per year, and provides employment and opportunity for more than 220,000 world-class creative minds of the future, from actors to set designers, filmmakers to costume makers.

“Soon, we’ll also be able to offer an opportunity for patrons to come aboard and join the project, helping us to create a lasting asset that the sector, town and public can enjoy, and our students are able to use to develop further their specialist skills in key performance disciplines.”

PICTURES: Bournemouth's Playhouse, Palace Court Theatre and Galaxy Cinema remembered 30 years on

The Palace Court Theatre was designed in 1931 by architects Seal & Hardy, who also designed the Daily Echo building, Westover Ice Rink and the Palace Court Hotel, now the Premier Inn.

In the 1950s and 60s, Bournemouth’s own repertory troupe, the Barry O’Brien Company, put on a different production every week or fortnight. Actor Lennard Pearce, who became Grandad in Only Fools and Horses, was a member of the group, and other performers included Sheila Hancock, Elaine Paige, Vivien Merchant, Anthony Bates and David Baron – later to become the playwright Harold Pinter.

The venue closed in 1986 and a Pentecostal congregation, the Assemblies of God, announced its intention to take it over.

The actor’s union Equity backed efforts to keep it as a theatre, and suggested Kenneth Branagh’s Renaissance Theatre Company might use it.

But a public inquiry defeated a council effort to keep the theatre and it became Wessex Christian Centre.

Cllr Philip Broadhead, deputy leader of BCP Council, said: “The university’s commitment and bold ambitions towards this project will secure the future an invaluable local civic asset. This not only ensures that Bournemouth remains unrivalled as a destination for residents, visitors, students and tourists, but also further enhances the outstanding educational offering set among the town.”