abc/Regal Cinema

The ABC Regal cinema in Lothian Road was opened in 1938, and played host to various package tours in the sixties.  The main auditorium was completetly demolished around the year 2000, with just the original corner front facade remaining intact. Presently an Odeon Cinema.

  • 1963  18th May Helen Shapiro        
  • 1964  15th April Cliff Richard & The Shadows, Dailey & Wayne, & Bob Miller & The Millermen featuring June Leslie & Arthur Lee with Dougie Arthur & The Milltones
Running order from the programme.
  • 1964  29th April The Beatles (two shows 6:30 & 8:50) 
A competition advert from the Evening News.  Thank you to Alan for the scan.
Fans queue along Morrison Street and Semple Street for the Beatles.  Thank you to Alan for the picture.
Please hover over the above cutting to magnify. Eileen and Patricia saw the show after all, courtesy of two 17 year old gents Douglas Scott and John Marshall. 
Thank you to Alan for the clipping above.
  • 1964  21st May The Rolling Stones (2 shows)
  • 1964  22nd May Freddie & The Dreamers, support Millie
  • 1964  29th September Billy J Kramer & The Dakotas, The Ronettes Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, The Yardbirds, and The Nashville Teens or The Kinks, Bill Blacks Combo, & Tim Connor (compere)
  • 1964  19th October The Beatles (two shows 6:30 &8:50), also on the bill were The Rustiks, Michael Haslam, Sounds Incorporated, Mary Wells, The Remo Four, & Tommy Quickly, & Bob Bain (compere)
An actual ticket for this Beatles show!  Many of the shows of this period took place in cinemas, and they regularly just sold standard cinema tickets without the bands name.  Look at the seat number too! Stalls A30, unbelievable!!  What must that have been like!!
Programme for the Beatles shows on 19th October 1964.
Beatles fans camping outside the ABC Cinema to buy Beatles tickets in 1964.  Thank you to Jennifer Woods and Debbie Kearney for these fantastic and historic pictures.  ©Jennifer Woods 1964.
  • 1964  4th November Cliff Richard, The Shadows, Faye Fisher, Johnny Hawkins & His Orchestra, & Frank Berry (compere)
  • 1964  3rd December Gerry & The Pacemakers, GenePitney, The Kinks, Marianne Faithfull, Mike Cotton Sound, Bobby Shafto, and a certain Davie Jones & The Manish Boys (unbilled).  Later, Davie Jones would of course transform himself into David Bowie…..quite a bill! Bryan Burdon (compere)
  • 1965  12th February Cilla Black, PJ Proby (replaced by Tom Jones & The Squires as PJ had been banned from all ABC cinemas after splitting his trousers on stage earlier in the tour), Tommy Roe, The Fourmost, The Mike Cotton Sound, Tommy Quickly, The Remo Four, Sounds Incorporated, & Bob Bain (compere)
The running order from the programme.
  • 1965  5th March Roy Orbison, The Rockin’ Berries, Marianne Faithfull, The Three Quarters, Jon Mark, Cliff Bennett & The Rebel Rousers, The Untamed, & Frank Berry (compere)
  • 1965  12th October Brian Epstein Star Scene ’65 package tour featuring bill toppers The Everly Brothers & Cilla Black (2 shows 6:30+8:50)
  • 1965  28th October Gene Pitney, The Rockin’ Berries, Lulu & The Luvvers, Peter & Gordon, The Mike Cotton Sound, The Quiet Five, Syd & Eddie aka Little & Large (comperes)
  • 1966  1st April (two shows 6:30 & 8:50) Roy Orbison, The Walker Brothers,  Lulu & The Luvvers, The Marionettes, Kim D, The Quotations, & Ray Cameron (compere)
  • 1966  20th April Hermans Hermits          
  • 1966  20th May Bob Dylan, & The Hawks
Bob Dylan walking in Princes Street, 20th May 1966.  ©Barry Feinstein 1966. The unusual windows at the very top right corner of the photo are the windows above the then Monseigneur/Jacey cinema at number 121.  This shop would later become the original Virgin record shop on Princes Street. I understand this is where Mr Dylan may have just exited from, after watching a newsreel. The Jacey was then one of the many news reel cinemas that existed at the time.
  • 1966  13th October The Walker Brothers, The Troggs, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich
  • 1967  3rd March (two shows 6:30 & 8:50) Gene Pitney, Sound Incorporated, David Garrick, Normie Rowe, The Loot, The Troggs, & Bryan Burdon (compere) 
  • 1967  20th March Roy Orbison, The Small Faces, Paul & Barry Ryan, The Jeff Beck Group, The Settlers, Sonny Childe & The TNT, The Robb Storme Group, & Ray Cameron (compere)
The running order from the programme.
  • 1967  10th May (two shows 6:30 & 8:50)The Beach Boys, Helen Shapiro, Simon Dupree & The Big Sound, The Nite People, The Marionettes, Terry Reid, Peter Jays Jaywalker’s, & Alan Field (compere)
  • 1967  7th November Tom Jones
  • 1978  5th June The Alan Parsons Project (this wasn’t a live show but an album playback preview of the album “Pyramid”.  The advert reads “A unique oppurtunity to hear Alan Parsons new album at yout local cinema.  Free tickets available from selected record shops).