placenamesStrandtown
Baile na Trá
The Strand changed from a single auditorium into a variety theatre, a multiplex and an arts centre.
The name
These Irish name elements are associated with this record in the Logainm glossary.
An element’s translation is a clue, rather than a complete explanation of the name. Its form and meaning depend on local history and the full Irish name.
Recorded forms
- Baile na Trá · Irish · main form · validated name
- Strandtown · English · main form
Place & story
A shipyard neighbour
The Strand Cinema opened on 7 December 1935 with 1,170 seats. John McBride Neill designed the building with curved walls and porthole details influenced by the nearby shipyard. Union Cinemas initially operated it; ABC took over in 1937. [2]
Returning to films
Ronnie Rutherford relaunched the venue as Strand Variety in September 1984. Its opening programme featured the John Anderson Big Band Show. Live entertainment proved difficult to sustain, and on 29 April 1988 the building reopened as a four-screen cinema. A charity established in 2013 sought to secure its future as Strand Arts Centre. [2]
Geographic information
- Place type
- Population centre
- County
- Down
- Barony
- Castlereagh Lower
- Civil parish
- Holywood
- Within
- Strandtown
- Coordinates
- 54.59585, -5.89554 (approximate)
- Logainm ID
- 1413299 ↗
Sources & further reading
- Logainm.ie — Strandtown. Place names and geographic record, licensed under CC BY 4.0.
- Our Story — Strand Stories · Strand Arts Centre
Name record retrieved 2026-10-25 · Source record modified 2019-10-08. How this page was prepared.