Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Jute mill weaving movie magic
Old industry replaced by glamour of silver screen
THE last jute factory built in Dundee was torn down 25 years ago – and work began on a multiplex cinema in its place.
The new venture meant the closing credits had finally rolled for an industry that had for decades been a defining aspect of the city by the Tay.
Jute Industries Ltd acquired the site at the former Milton of Craigie Farm between Douglas Road and Longtown Street in 1953 from Dundee Corporation, identifying its location near the city’s new housing schemes as the ideal spot for a mill.
Douglasfield Works opened in 1956 as the most modern jute factory in the world, producing an annual output of yarn about 14 million miles long.
However, Sidlaw Industries ceased production in 1978 as the jute industry declined and Douglasfield Works was largely demolished in March 1984.
The site was later leased by BP as a pipe storage yard until 1992 and remained vacant apart from occasional car boot sales and visits from Horne’s funfair.
A planning application for a Mecca bingo club to the north of the former jute works was approved in August 1997.
English-based company Federal Estates and Development bought the remaining seven acres and lodged plans for an £11 million Eclipse Leisure Park.
A multiplex cinema, fitness centre, restaurant and fast-food outlets were proposed.
Odeon was signed up for the cinema, which would be the chain’s second multiplex in the city after the six-screen Odeon at Stack Leisure Park in Lochee which opened in June 1993.
Building work was carried out by Tulloch Construction in September 1999 with the shell of the complex completed by May 2000. The interior fit-out followed and the Odeon opened ahead of schedule.
General manager Rodger Moon arranged a series of special previews of Vin Diesel action movie Pitch Black for Evening Telegraph readers ahead of the gala opening on November 10.
But success wasn’t instant, with competition fierce.
After a relatively slow start things gained momentum in December when The Grinch stole the box office.
The Jim Carrey movie appealed to children and their parents.
Douglasfield Odeon marketing manager Colin Rawling said things would only get better and predicted 2001 would be the “greatest movie year to date”.
“It took a while to get on its feet but now we’re certainly making inroads into our local competitors – it’s going really well at the moment,” he said.
“Next month we will have the eagerly anticipated Hannibal which will bring people in and then later in the year films like The Mummy Returns and Tomb Raider.”
The big year arrived and Odeon decided to throw its eggs into one basket, closing the multiplex at the Stack following competition from the Virgin Cinema at Camperdown Park.
Things got busier at Odeon Douglasfield. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and part one of The Lord Of The Rings trilogy premiered in time for Christmas 2001 with queues of young wizards.
Leanne Ritchie, duty manager at the Odeon, said demand for the Lord Of The Rings film was unprecedented and described the scene as “mayhem”. “We had a queue of roughly 150 people beating down the door this morning for the 11am showing,” she said.
The drama was not confined to the cinema.
A rescue operation began in August 2002 after the animal control unit was alerted to the sound of a kitten trapped beneath a drain at the rear of the Odeon.
A decision was taken to remove concrete surrounding the pipe with a drill.
A blanket and some food were put down to entice it out.
The tiny animal, nicknamed the Odeon One, was picked up by a security guard.
He heard the kitten mewing as it emerged from the pipe after three days. The seven-week-old bundle was given a new home.
Remember Mamma Mia in
2008? There were queues around the block and performances sold out.
Graham Duff, manager of Odeon Douglasfield, was astounded at the audience reaction to the super trouper smash-hit musical starring Meryl Streep.
“I’ve never seen anything quite like it before,” he said.
“Audiences are clapping and cheering and in some cases standing and dancing, which isn’t something we see particularly regularly.
“Long may it continue, though. It seems to be a genuine phenomenon.”
The romance, magic and nostalgia of going to the Odeon at Douglasfield has endured.
Film fans have been crying Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! a ticket for generations.