The Walpole.

This is all that is left of Ealing's Walpole Cinema. It was built in 1908 as a roller skating rink but converted to a picture house 4 years later. It was an independent, then an Odeon and then a Rank Organisation cinema when they took over Odeon Group.

I didn't go there very often as it really was a "flea pit". I had the bites to prove it. It closed in 1972 and not long after became a much more interesting proposition to myself and my friends. Bands who were due to play at Earls Court and Wembley used the old cinema to practice. We would go out at lunchtime and try and listen outside or even sneak in. And we'd try again after school finished. We managed to catch Queen, The Rolling Stones and The Who that I can remember off the top of my head.

Two of my schoolmates however skived off from lessons as well. Yes, they got into trouble but it paid off. One went on to be a session musician and the other managed to get a job as a roadie and progressed up the ladder. In the last few years he has been tour manager for David Bowie, Dave Gilmour and Prince. Sometimes 100 lines proves to be worth it.