Arbroath’s only cinema has gone on the market with a £500,000 price tag.
Chalmers Filmhouse on the Angus town’s seafront has been pulling in movie fans since 2014.
The four-screen cinema is part of what was once Arbroath’s open air swimming pool.
It was also a nightclub which attracted names like Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan in the 1980s.
Chalmers is one of two cinemas put up for sale by its private owner.
The other is in a B-listed church in Bathgate. It has been open since 2010.
Selling agents Christie & Co. say Chalmers offers a unique opportunity with huge potential.
Chalmers also has an adjoining restaurant, which is currently closed.
It sits beside the popular West Links play area which is a magnet for families all-year round.
Development potential
Tony Spence of Christie & Co said: “The current owner is now looking to sell due to retirement.
“The Arbroath business trades well and is very popular with locals and tourists.
“However, given it’s waterfront location, it could also lend itself to other developments such as residential apartments, subject to planning consent.
“The vacant restaurant which is adjoined to the cinema is not trading at present, presenting opportunity for a new owner to generate extra income.”
Crowd-puller down the decades
Arbroath’s open-air swimming pool was once Scotland’s largest.
In the 1930s it headed a list of popular Scottish lidos which pulled the crowds during the likes of the Glasgow fair.
At its peak, the pool could pack in 1,200 swimmers and another 4,000 spectators.
And it often hit those numbers at the height of summer when the cutie kids and Miss Arbroath titles were up for grabs on a weekly basis.
But the 1970s lure of cheap foreign holidays took tourists away from Arbroath.
Within a decade the pool was costing a fortune to run compared to the numbers taking the plunge into the notoriously chilly salt-water pumped from the North Sea next door.
Angus District Council voted to close it in 1981.
Local farmer and businessman Ian Stirling bought part of it and it became the springboard for a new generation of fun-loving customers as Smokeys nightclub.
By the time former Radio Tay DJ Ally Bally put his name above the door in 1988 it was part of an Angus nightclub scene which also featured the legendary Flicks in Brechin.
Other nightclubs followed before the cinema change almost a decade ago.
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