Welcome to the Projected Picture Trust

From the 1960s onwards, Picture Palaces were being boarded up, turned into bingo halls, split into multiscreens or razed to the ground for redevelopment. Projection equipment was being thrown into skips or sold for scrap. It was these developments that in 1978 led to the birth of the PPT by the then BFI Technical Officer, Charles Beddow. Convinced that much of Britain’s arts heritage would be lost forever, he successfully created a steering committee and the rest, as they say, is history.

Run by an eclectic mix of respected industry professionals and cinema enthusiasts, the trust boasts a world-class collection of cinema technology artefacts and a growing digital archive that will eventually become an accessible hub of knowledge for just about anyone interested in finding out more about this fascinating, if often overlooked, side of our much-loved business.

With an impressive portfolio of real-world expertise, ideas as grand as the films we screen and hard-working, enthusiastic volunteers, the PPT has the potential to become a world leader in the field of cinema technology preservation.

The PPT, has a base at Dean Clough Mills, Halifax where the majority of the equipment is stored and there are displays across the country. The PPT goes well beyond just collecting equipment. The trust has a huge range of working projection and sound systems and is able to provide the expertise to install and operate for events such as film festivals. Equipment can also be provided as props for film makers.

The images change every few seconds. Hover over one to pause and the arrows allow you to move through the 11 images.

7 October

These shots are of the two lots of equipment Steve Rowley delivered on Saturday 4 October and the following pictures are what we found and partially assembled on Tuesday 7 October. A couple of machines (the 9.5mm and the green 35mm have yet to be identified). The Butchers Empire Model 1 had no arc mechanism and we managed to find one in our stores that fitted. Although it is mounted on a base we will have to create a stand for it. The Ross arc (I am reliably informed) originally came in the bare metal finish. We fitted it on a pedestal along with an old RCA P3 sound head and an early Ross projector. This makes  a very nice period machine although missing an adaptor gear for the Ross and spool boxes.

9.5 Mystery

9.5 Specto

16 Agfa

Empire No1

Empire

Gaumont

Not sure

Pallet

Ross arc

Truck

27 September

Fig 1 shows spool boxes off our 21 set which had the paint peeling badly. Peter sanded it all off and I sprayed it. It is one of the early ones and consequently mustard in colour and not hammer finish. Fig 2 shows Allan making a bracket to fit a limelight into a Hahn lamphouse which had nothing inside and will go on the back of our Tyler. In fig 3 Peter can be seen fitting the fire traps and viewing glasses onto the Tyler spoolboxes which were resprayed last week. Finally, in fig 4, Richard is seen starting to replace all the old capacitors on the Editola amplifier that he has been working on these last few weeks getting the film transport mechanism refurbished.

Fig 1

Fig 2

Fig 3

Fig 4

16 September

An Evening of Nostalgia, organised by  Sue Hanson of Halifax Heritage Tours was held at Crossley Gallery on Tuesday 16 September and was the second such event we have done with them. The turnout was around 50. We screened rare films of the ever-changing face of Halifax over the last century. 

The first photo shows the image on the screen at the start of evening. The second one is a shot of the audience at the end.

14 September

Basically Richard (Fig 1) has continued his restoration of the Editola. In the foreground to the right is a silent Tyler which Peter is restoring followed by the spool boxes being resprayed (Figs 2 & 3). Then the Eiki (Fig 4) which Allan is repairing and is at present waiting for a new xenon bulb to be delivered. Alex and I met at Cambridge to look over some equipment which may become available to us along with a load of other film equipment (Fig 5, 6 &7). They are an old portable Simplex, a 16mm Studio machine, and another model of an Eiki with a xenon and integral electronic rectifier. Much lighter than our EX1500 but same size lamp. Finally Peter running through the 16mm part of the programme for An Evening of Halifax Nostalgia at Crossley Gallery on Tuesday 16 September (see below).

Ongoing

We have had a productive few weeks constructing what is now called Screen 2. Never thought we would 'twin' Dean Clough and add an extra screen! Just like back in the 1970s. Here is the story so far:

Fig 1 shows the area we are turning into the new screen which will be for narrow gauge and video screenings. The area is quite damp and has an uneven York Stone floor. 

Figs 2 - 5. The metal end wall panels were removed and old pallets used to raise the floor above the flags by cutting and packing them to create a level sub-floor. 

Figs 6 - 8. Once completed it was treated with wood preservative before the finished damp proof floor panels were laid. 

Figs 9 - 11. A new stud wall was built and fitted at what will become the screen end and similarly one for the front wall of the projection area. 

Figs 12 - 16. The old electrics were removed before fitting the joists for the projection room floor.

Figs 17 -20. Fitting floor to projection area. 

Progress has been delayed due to the illness of Tom Harris.

Fig 1

Fig 2 - with Tom Harris and Rob Younger

Fig 3 - with Tom and Symon Culpan

Fig 4 - with Tom, Dion Hanson and Peter Berry

Fig 5 - with Dion

Fig 6 - with Peter

Fig 7

Fig 8

Fig 9 - with Tom

Fig 10 - with Peter

Fig 11

Fig 12 - with Allan Foster

Fig 13 - with Tom

Fig 14

Fig 15

Fig 16

Fig 17

Fig 18 with Dion

Fig 19 - with Tom

Fig 20

To be continued.

Meet our team

Charles Beddow II
President

Thinking of becoming a member?

The Projected Picture Trust would love to welcome you as a new member.

As a member you would be free to participate in the activities of the trust in any way that suits your time and skills and meet others with similar interests. Or you can just have the satisfaction of knowing you are aiding the trust in its efforts to preserve the magic of cinema.

Members can participate in outings and visits, including those organised by the Cinema Theatre Association, access the Member zone on this website and have their say at the annual general meeting. They receive a copy of our magazine, Rewind, every three months and have access, via the Member zone of this website, to an archive of around twenty years of Rewind.

Rates

The PPT uses PayPal for the collection of membership fees. Payments can be made using a PayPal account or most credit/debit cards. Transactions use PayPal's secure system and no details of the PayPal or card accounts are passed to the PPT.

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Gift Aid 

If you pay UK tax the Projected Picture Trust may be able to claim Gift Aid on your membership fee. By agreeing to Gift Aid being claimed you confirm you will have paid at least the same amount as the membership fee in Income Tax or Capital Gains Tax in the current tax year.                     

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If you wish to add a donation to your membership fee please make the donation using this form. We regret the service provided for us by PayPal does not offer the facility to add a donation when using the Joining or Renewing forms.         

Jack Hadaway-Weller visited Dean Clough Mills in Halifax to meet Dion Hanson and the meeting was broadcast on BBC Radio Leeds.

This video uses the audio produced and broadcast by BBC Radio Leeds with images added by Dion.

We appreciate the coverage BBC Radio Leeds has given to the PPT.

Reference library

The PPT Reference library contains over 800 scanned documents consisting of sales brochures, service and operating manuals and information sheets.

Even if you are not looking for specific information, the library gives a stunning view of what was the vastness of the cinema industry and the many fields it encompassed.

PPT member Fred Fullerton has been producing cinema related videos for many years.

 They can be viewed here.