By Ian McConnell
The Playhouse in Ayr, described as “one of the last and best-surviving buildings by architect John Fairweather”, is to be sold at auction with a guide price of £375,000.
The property, adjacent to Ayr bus station, has been a bingo hall for the last two decades.
Commercial investment property auctioneer Acuitus noted the property is on the site of the Boswell Park roller-skating rink, established in 1911. This building was then converted by George Green in 1914 into the 2,000-seat Boswell Park Pavilion Cinema, which was demolished after the First World War.
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A new cinema named the Playhouse was built for George Green in 1923 by John Fairweather with a seating capacity of 1,700, but it was destroyed by fire. Mr Fairweather then designed The Ayr Playhouse, the current building. The venue opened on July 8, 1931 and, with 3,104 seats, was the third-largest cinema to be built in Scotland.
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Acuitus said the “only other cinema of this scale to survive in Scotland is Fairweather’s Edinburgh Playhouse”.
The B-listed property at 4 Boswell Park is now occupied by Mecca Bingo, on an extended lease until 2026. The 35,187 sq ft building sits on a site area of 0.357 acres and produces a current annual rent of £166,498, Acuitus noted.
Mhairi Archibald, of Acuitus, said: “Fairweather’s Playhouse designs are renowned across Scotland. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own one of the last remaining buildings.”
The online auction is due to take place on June 16.
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