Coliseum

Designed by Frank Matcham as a music hall for Moss Empires, the Coliseum was started in 1903 and opened 1905. Originally seating 2893, entertainment included variety, pantomimes and, in 1920, Wagner's 'Ring'. However, the Eglinton Street location made it difficult to fill the large theatre and in 1925 it went over to full time cinema use.

Designed in the Flemish style, its comparatively small ashlar frontage to Eglinton Street has been covered by a corrugated metal frontispiece. The octagonal balcony stair tower has a carved stone frieze and a steeply pitched roof, surmounted by a campanile. The entrance was through a high archway with a loggia above and a steeply-pitched pavilion roof. The pit and balcony entrances were at various points around the block and the theatre's name is spelled out on large carved panels on the front and side elevations.

The interior has been altered by consecutive rebuilds. Cinema architect W R Glen remodelled it for cinema use in 1931, when the proscenium was removed, and the remainder of the auditorium plasterwork was irretrievably altered for Cinerama use in 1963 when the top balcony tier was partially demolished. Nevertheless, the original ceiling and other Matcham fragments remained. The cinema closed in October 1980 when a compulsory purchase order was made to allow for a new road scheme. The scheme was never implemented and the building was further altered for bingo use until closure in 2003.

The Coliseum was seriously damaged by fire on 25 May 2009, and the site subsequently cleared due to the structural safety of the building. It will be important to consider theatre use in any redevelopment of the site, or the loss of theatre use to be a part of planning obligations that will benefit other theatres in Glasgow.