St Albans and Harpenden Review reporter Adam Binnie visits The Rex to see what's in store for the London Road cinema.

I have always felt a bit guilty about the Odeon in St Albans. It was the venue of my first-ever cinema experience, The Lion King, and sparked something in me that VHS could never quite live up to.

Then we neglected it in favour of a new multi-screen complex in Hatfield. It had bigger screens, more films and stickier floors and became the choice for a rainy Saturday afternoon.

Time went by and the credits rolled for the last time at the London Road cinema, left behind in an era when you could check showings in your local newspaper.

The rumour mill suggested the derelict building would be pulled down and turned into flats - but the old art deco building seemed destined to be nothing more than a blank wall for people to stick posters on.

Exactly the same plot had already played out in nearby Berkhamsted, where The Rex, opened in 1938 and closed in 1988, was also on the brink of demolition.

That was until cinema enthusiast James Hannaway brought it back to life in 2004. He's planning to do the same thing for the Odeon and hopes to exchange contracts next February.

He said: “It won't be a multiplex, it will only have one or two screens. It'll be exactly the same set up here, this is what works and what people want.

“It'll be named after one of its original names, it started out as The Alpha, which burned down and was then renamed something like The Colloseum.

“All the original features were torn out - the 70s weren't kind to architecture. We've only got ten weeks to raise a lot of money, but after we complete the deal it should take two years to finish.”

I visited The Rex for the first time on Saturday night and was immediately transformed into my six-year-old self again queueing up for the latest Disney production.

The interior of The Rex comes from a time when going to the cinema was like going to the theatre, when the cinema was a new thing, something special.

From the shell light fittings to the tables and chairs below, The Rex is a theatre brought back from the golden age of cinema. I felt decidedly under dressed in my T-shirt and jeans and completely engulfed by the armchair I was ushered towards.

Mr Hannaway himself appeared on stage before the film started announcing some birthdays and telling us what will be shown in the next couple of weeks before the curtain was pulled open for the start of the film.

I've been to independent cinemas before, once on holiday near Polzeath we visited the local single screen set up, where the adverts were for local tractor repairs or the menu from a local restaurant.

The Rex however was like visiting the 1950s, but with all the advantages of modern picture and sound quality. As an experience it was much more like “going to the cinema” and much less like “going to see a film”.

Mr Hannaway spoke at length and rather grumpily about the modern cinemas, the sticky floors and soul-less delivery. At first I considered it elitist but after experiencing what cinema should be like first-hand, I'm converted.

The only problem I have now got is that I do not think I will be able to go to another cinema again. Let us hope the deal is done quickly so that we enjoy such evenings out in St Albans.

A public meeting for St Albans residents will be held at The Rex cinema, Berkhamsted, on Sunday, November 29.