Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

VIDEO: Plans to transform former Kirkcaldy cinema into theatre close to milestone

Ambitious plans to transform Kirkcaldy’s former cinema building are close to taking a major step forward, The Courier can reveal.

Grant Foster, the director of the Kings Theatre Kirkcaldy charity, says that work to secure the building from the elements is almost complete as stripping out of the premises continues.

Courier News - Fife Story - Jonathan Watson - Kirkcaldy - A group of Kirkcaldy enthusiasts are currently renovating the old ABC Cinema in Kirkcaldy with a view to re-opening it as The Kings Theatre. - Pictured: Internal photographs of the work being done to renovate the old ABC Cinema into The Kings Theatre. - Tuesday 1 November 2016
The Courier was granted access to the old ABC cinema to see how work was progressing as volunteers carry on with efforts to transform the historic building into a world-class theatre and concert hall.

“We should have the place wind and watertight within six weeks,” Mr Foster said.

“Loads of people are helping us do this, through social media, clearing up.

“We were going to try and get a bigger volunteering programme out there but health and safety is not allowing that.

“All we are thinking about right now is getting it wind and watertight and stripped out so it’s at least a clean and safe environment to come in to.”

Having closed its doors at the end of 1999, Mr Foster and his team have uncovered a treasure trove of delights as the stripping out process continues.

Old newspapers from the World War Two era, as well as rolls of old projector film from when the cinema closed its doors have been discovered.

However, the structure itself has slowly been giving up its secrets, with stained glass windows and delicate Art Deco styling touches, masked for decades by false walls, having been unveiled.

Artist's impression of the exterior of the completed Kings Theatre, Kirkcaldy.
Artist’s impression of the exterior of the completed Kings Theatre, Kirkcaldy.

In addition to the old cinema, the former YWCA, adjacent to the rear of the building, has also been secured with a view to establishing a restaurant, bars, and a hall to enhance the theatre experience for patrons.

A lot of fundraising still needs to be done, with the work currently underway having been subsidised by philanthropist John Sim.

Artists impression of the Kings Theatre, Kirkcaldy.
Artist’s impression of the Kings Theatre, Kirkcaldy.

With huge support from the public, Mr Foster said: “We want to try and make this site unique and to work for Kirkcaldy and bring people back into the town.

“We have the YWCA at the other side (and) you can literally have a wedding on one side and a rock band on the other and neither the two will meet.

“That’s a very unique thing.”

jowatson@thecourier.co.uk.