The Funk Hole - Location Snippets
The Ritz Cinema, Hastings
After reading Mr Peter Paterson's comments in his review of The Funk Hole (Daily Mail, 24/11/03) in which he likened the Ritz to a 'flea pit', Mrs Victoria Seymour and Mr Ivor White kindly provided us with photos of the Ritz during the forties.
This perspective does not show the frontage to advantage, but the cinema
did hold 2,000 people in comfort almost every evening throughout the 40's.
Huge projection room with two 35mm projectors and
two spotlights plus slide projector.
Circa 1948, Ivor White with 'Dickie' now Lord Attenborough inside the Ritz.
Mr White said: "How insulting to call the newest and largest 2,000 seater ABC Ritz cinema in Hastings (built in the 1930s) a flea-pit, and we certainly did screen the latest films within a few weeks of their London release."
Sam and Andrew outside the Ritz as it appeared in The Funk Hole.
The Ritz Cinema, Hastings
This perspective does not show the frontage to advantage, but the cinema
did hold 2,000 people in comfort almost every evening throughout the 40's.
Huge projection room with two 35mm projectors and
two spotlights plus slide projector.
Circa 1948, Ivor White with 'Dickie' now Lord Attenborough inside the Ritz.
Mr White said: "How insulting to call the newest and largest 2,000 seater ABC Ritz cinema in Hastings (built in the 1930s) a flea-pit, and we certainly did screen the latest films within a few weeks of their London release."
Sam and Andrew outside the Ritz as it appeared in The Funk Hole.
You can visit Mr White's website, here.
Eastbourne Bandstand
The current bandstand was built in 1931. The promenade area features as a tea pavilion in two episodes, Eagle Day - Bruce Leighton-Morris and Andrew have tea there - and The Funk Hole - Sam's attempt to cheer up Andrew and Collier strolls there with Milner. It isn't clear whether the promenades feature as themselves or if they are supposed to be located in Hastings, probably the latter.
Mrs Seymour says: "It is a very up-market, award-winning venue; the waitresses wear black dresses with little white aprons and caps as in pre-war days and the tea is the most expensive in the region. The tea room is on the part of the seafront called the Redoubt, as there is a fortress there; part of the chain of Martello Towers that were built along this section of the south east coast to repel Napoleon's invasion."
Link: Bandstand Concerts
Also see Shirley's "Visit to Hastings" for an account of the filming of several scenes from The Funk Hole.