ONE OF the last family-run cinemas in Ireland is to close this month after more than 70 years in business. The Regal cinema opened in 1936 in Youghal, Co Cork, and was upgraded to a three-screen cinema in June 1997.
It is owned by the Hurst family, who has operated a cinema in Youghal since 1914, making the Regal one of the oldest cinemas of its category in the world.
Built in 1935, following the fire that destroyed its predecessor, the Regal remains a family-run operation, unlike many of the large cinema chains now monopolising the movies.
The closure will also see the retirement of 87-year-old projectionist Michael Roche. He has worked at the cinema since 1941.
Youghal Fine Gael councillor Barbara Murray described the closure as “the end of an era”. Locals say the cinema will be fondly remembered as a great meeting place in the seaside town.
Sinn Féin councillor Sandra McLellan said: “If was one of those places you could go to as a young child. We went to the matinees of the westerns at the weekend . . . It is the end of an era.”
