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MY 50 YEARS AT 191 COLLINS STREET

by Ian Williams

Within twelve months, I had started going to the queue! Just before 9 am, I asked the person
the various theatres in the city during school next to me to mind my place whilst I “signed
holidays on my own, and could never miss on on” at the store, via the Flinders Street
peering through the cyclone gates at the front entrance, then promptly walked out the
of the theatre. The Plaza had re-opened a few Flinders Lane exit! “They’ll probably think
months after the fire. Upstairs, the ticket lobby I’m in the stockroom”, I said to myself. Soon
was intact, and the glass doors to the grand after, I had my two tickets – U33/34 in the
foyer had been frosted over. To my eyes, the stalls. Opening night came and my brother and
theatre was just lying there, dormant and I waited patiently at the glass doors. When the
forgotten. doors opened, I was off like a rocket --- FIRST
IN TO THE THEATRE! The movie, The
In September 1947, I went past and saw the Homestretch, was an average Christmas
marble steps at the front being taken up. I went attraction - a horse racing story in Technicolor
home and burst into tears as I said to my with Cornel Wilde and Maureen O’Hara. I
mother, "They’re pulling the Regent down!" wandered upstairs at interval to marvel again
Fortunately, my tears were not to last too long at the magnificently restored auditorium with
as it was announced in early December that the the huge chandelier and light changes. I didn’t
theatre was re-opening on 19 December . I was know at the time, but British comedian George
working at Ball and Welch between exams and Formby, who had come out to appear at the
the Christmas break-up. On the day that Tivoli, was guest of honour. It wouldn’t have
bookings opened, I got out of bed about 4.45 mattered even if I had known. The Regent had
am, caught the 5.12 train from Box Hill and been restored --- nothing or anybody could be
arrived outside the theatre about 5.45, third in more important than that. From then on I saw

Ian Williams, befittingly enthroned at the Regent
On 7 October 2016, our member Ian Williams
sadly passed away. Over recent years, Ian
donated copious quantities of photographs and
other documents to the CATHS Archive. Much
of the information related to the Regent
Theatre in Collins Street. The following is a
reprint of an article written by Ian in 1995 for
Vox Magazine, reproduced here without
updating.
ast March saw a special “anniversary”. It
Lwas fifty years to the month that I made
that first visit to the Regent Theatre - a visit
that was to influence my life both in my love
for the “movie palace”, and to influence my
choice of career when leaving school a few
years later. My mother had taken me to see the
Fox family classic, My Friend Flicka, and I
remember saying that I wanted to be a film star
like Roddy McDowell! Big thinker me. Most
kids would probably have just wanted the
horse that he loved in the movie! At the time,
it was another great visit to the movies and
naturally I didn’t have any idea of the tragedy
that was to follow within the month - the
disastrous fire that was to destroy the Regent’s
magnificent auditorium on the evening of
29 April 1945. The news on the radio on the
Sunday morning of the fire left me in a state
of disbelief. I knew that there was something
about that theatre that was “special” more than
any other that I had been to; but we had to wait
until Monday morning’s Sun newspaper to see
those photos of the utter devastation that the
fire had caused. I remembered every detail of
those articles; the probable cause of the fire,
how it was discovered etc., but could only pine
for the loss of something that I knew had meant
something “special”.
Ian’s first love - Melbourne’s Regent Theatre

30 CINEMARECORD # 92