Shaftesbury Hotel, Perth

[nettyc]

Hi Sharay, did you have success with finding your resident of the Shaftesbury Hotel? I too am trying to find my Great Grandparents, Blanche Wallace and William Scott. They had this hotel as their permanent residence in 1914 while the were doing shows at the theatre. If you have a link to a site, I'd love that. They may have had their children with them at the time. Thanks kindly, Netty.

[suzyvan]

    The Shaftesbury Hotel was built about 1904 by Thomas Alfred Shafto, businessman, Perth City Councillor and owner of the Shaftesbury Gardens at 49 Stirling St, Perth (a semi-open air picture theatre with a seating capacity for 2000 people that opened in 1911). The Shaftesbury, the Luxor and the Tivoli, were all on the same site, but at different times. It was a celebration of Perth’s home of vaudeville where comedians, clowns, tumblers, acrobats, magicians and dancing girls all performed. This fleapit theatre remained as the Shaftesbury until it closed in 1924, re-opened as the Luxor in 1925 to be called the Ritz in 1934 and then back to the Luxor.

There is a photo of the hotel as well
Kaz

[suzyvan]

The Ritz at this time was routinely promoted as “formerly the Luxor Theatre” (having been renamed in March 1934). The venue appears to have struggled to establish its new identity, and a few weeks into the Cameo Revue Company season “Ritz” was removed from advertisements and replaced with Luxor.

In the forties it was known as the Tivoli, then it was converted for dancing and became Canterbury Court Ballroom with a muti-story car-park added above in 1969, before demolition in 1990 and then for a while the site of the Myer Megamart building.

kaz

[nettyc]

Hi Suzyray, thanks for that info. My Grandfather Great Scott was a magician who performed there. I'd love to find a site with more information & possibly pictures of the performers around 1914. His wife was a pianist/violinist.

[suzyvan]

another poster for the thearte.
Kaz

[suzyvan]

RIP SHAFTESBURY HOTEL, STIRLING ST, NORTHBRIDGE, 1930s - Whole block demolished, now the Megamart...
Kaz

[Bitza_This]

Ok there is some miss information going on with the Shaftesbury Hotel. Firstly the Shaftesbury was at the start of Stirling St straight across from the Sunday times on the same side as the Loaded Dog wine bar. In-between the Shaftesbury and the Loaded Dog was Canterbury Court mall that ran from Stirling St up to Beaufort St. We had the Shaftesbury from 1968 to 1978 where the last few years was shared ownership with a lady called Merry cant remember her last name. I believe the place suzyvan talking about was the dance hall around the corner because the Shaftesbury was called the Shaftesbury the hole time we where there right up till its death. I remember all that mall being closed. I remember being able to go from the hotel thru the empty shops and into the 9 story car park above the dance hall. There we would throw cans of coke down onto the pavement and If you spun it just right it would burst open at the top and spray in a large circle. The dance halls Known as the Shaftesbury Theatre from 1912, the entertainment between 1918 and 1936 was almost exclusively vaudeville. The venue’s name changed several times before it was demolished in the 1950s. These included the Luxor (1925), Luxor Picture Theatre (1936), and Tivoli (1940s). It also briefly served as a dance hall (Canterbury Court). Out of that one of the dance hall remained thru the 60s and early 70s.
The Shaftesbury use to have a third story and a balcony at one stage because of the old pictures in the bar and the fact the old lift had a third floor button but no third floor to go too. Apparently  the original roof rotted away to the point of not being able to fix, so they just took off the top floor.

[peterspark]

I can tell you the Shaftesbury Hotel in Stirling St was demolished in about 1990.

I have photos from it in the 1950s 1980s and of course the ones on line for 1930s.

My ancestor Thomas Alfred Shafto built the hotel
Any more info just ask.

[Peter Spark]

Could you please email me BITZA THIS
Id like to know more about the location of the various buildings around the Shaftesbury. Many different versions of where they were and looking at photos I am now confused.
Please email me sparkpeter@bigpond.com