The Forum

This Wetherspoon pub was originally the Forum cinema, built in 1937.

In 1936, the Gem was demolished to enable a new cinema to be built. The proposed name was the Savoy, but the name finally chosen was the Forum, from the area's Roman connections. The Roman link was also reflected in the interior design, which sported Roman centurions driving chariots modelled in low relief on the walls and floodlit from the base. There was also a stage with theatre lighting.