A LANDMARK former Ayr cinema is up for auction with an opening bid of £207,000.

The former Ayr Playhouse site was put on the market for sale or lease last year, after Mecca stopped using the building as a bingo hall.

The art deco, category B listed building dates back to the 1930s, and was most recently owned by a Manchester firm.

The building has not been used as a cinema since the 1960s, after being built by architect John Fairweather. 

It was sold at auction by investment property auctioneer Acuitus for £432,500 in summer 2021.

The property is on the site of the former Boswell Park roller-skating rink, which was established in 1911.

(Image: Future Property Auctions) This was converted by George Green in 1914 into the 2,000-seat Boswell Park Pavilion Cinema, which was demolished after the First World War.

A new cinema with a capacity of 1,700 named the Playhouse was built for George Green in 1923 by Mr Fairweather but it was destroyed by fire.

Mr Fairweather then designed the Ayr Playhouse, the current building. The venue opened in 1931, and with 3,104 seats, was the third-largest cinema to be built in Scotland.

It is up for auction on the Future Property Auctions site on November 7, with a starting bid of £207,000. 

For more information go to futurepropertyauctions.co.uk/property_details.asp?id=13869637#!/.