Box 01 · The story behind the box

The Regent Theater

Do you remember the stars overhead — or Superman watching over the Square?

A domed Cathedral Square landmark, transformed into a picture palace with a night sky inside.

See the Regent photographs Read the history See it on the map
Shop the Collector’s Box Includes the Regent box · coming soon
The Regent Theater collectible box design

The verified story

One address. More than one chapter.

The Regent story began before the cinema. The Royal Exchange building was already part of Cathedral Square by 1904; in 1930, its interior was transformed into a Spanish-inspired picture palace with stars and moving clouds overhead. A fire, a restoration and a later multiplex chapter followed, but generations remember the feeling that the film began before they had even taken their seats.

c. 1904–1930
Royal Exchange Building

An Edwardian Baroque office, retail and cafe building designed by the Luttrell Brothers.

1930–1996
Regent Theater

J. S. Guthrie converted the interior into the Spanish-themed picture palace Christchurch remembers.

1996–2011
Regent multiplex era

Hoyts opened a multiplex on the upper floor while other attractions occupied the historic building.

Through the years

The official record.

This timeline draws on the Canterbury Stories history as its editorial spine. Dates and names are kept separate from the shorter era labels printed on the collectible box.

c. 1904

The building before the cinema

The Royal Exchange building begins welcoming tenants. Its offices, shops and distinctive dome become part of the Cathedral Square streetscape.

1930

The Regent opens

After a major interior conversion, the Regent officially opens on 16 August with Paramount on Parade.

1979–1981

Fire and return

A fire guts the auditorium on 5 November 1979. The restored Regent reopens on 18 November 1981 as a twin-cinema complex.

1996

A multiplex chapter

Further alterations bring a Hoyts multiplex to the upper floor of the historic building.

2010–2011

Earthquake damage

The building is damaged in both major Canterbury earthquakes and is subsequently demolished. Its dome is salvaged.

This cinema was one chapter in a much larger Christchurch story. Place it in the wider timeline

Inside the archive

Photographs from the Christchurch Star / Allied Media collection, via Christchurch City Libraries (Canterbury Stories), with their catalogue IDs.

The Regent Theater frontage with the Hide Out film marquee
The Regent's Cathedral Square frontage during the Hide Out era, around 1934. Canterbury Photography Museum via DigitalNZ/eHive; creator unknown. All rights reserved. Open the archive record ↗
Burnt seating inside the Regent Theater after the 1979 fire
Burnt seating inside the Regent after the 1979 fire. Christchurch Star / Allied Media, via Christchurch City Libraries (Canterbury Stories) · ccl-cs-35172 Open the archive record ↗
Firefighters working inside the Regent Theater during the 1979 fire
Firefighters at work inside the Regent during the 1979 fire. Christchurch Star / Allied Media, via Christchurch City Libraries (Canterbury Stories) · ccl-cs-35169 Open the archive record ↗
The Regent Theater interior, showing its columns and stepped aisles, during the 1981 refurbishment
Regent interior during refurbishment ahead of twin-cinema reopening, 1981. Christchurch Star / Allied Media, via Christchurch City Libraries (Canterbury Stories) · ccl-cs-32455 Open the archive record ↗

Back on the bill

The films we remember.

Opening nights, familiar titles and the films linked to Regent.

Explore the films

What people remember

The history books cannot tell this part.

The album gathered for this collection shows the queues, the square, the 1979 Regent fire and the last years of the cinemas: archive photographs, each with its source credit.

See the Regent photographs →

Visual memories

Queues, the square and the last years.

Open the album

Help us remember

What detail can only you add?

  1. What do you remember about the stars and clouds overhead?
  2. Who took you to the Regent — and what did you see?
  3. Were you there before or after the 1979 fire?

From memory to keepsake

The Regent Theater is one of four stories in the collection.

The Regent box of Intermission Treats — orange coated chocolate — will be available exclusively from Deluxe Cinemas: at our box office at The Tannery or through our official online store, alongside the other three cinema keepsakes.

See the Collector’s Box See the Regent photographs Deluxe directions ↗