Sold in the early 1960s to the Shipman and King chain and later passing to EMI, it closed in May 1982 , the intention being to convert it to a bingo hall, the fate of many of its contemporaries. This never happened; instead it was demolished and replaced by a branch of McDonald's.

The Commodore Cinema was built in 1933 by the local Spencer-May family . It was intended to be a more modern alternative to their Picture Palace at the other end of the High Street. It was designed by architects Leslie H. Kemp and F. E. Tasker.