Born Free poster found during cinema restoration

A rare film poster highlighting the links between a Devon town and one of the biggest cinema hits of the 1960s has been unearthed.

Workers helping to restore Paignton Picture House as part of a £7m project discovered a large hand-painted poster announcing two lions used in 1966's Born Free had moved to Paignton Zoo after filming finished.

The poster was found while work took place on the venue's roof, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The Paignton Picture House Trust said the find was "a striking example of mid-20th Century promotional signage, and a tangible link between cinema, wildlife, and local history".

"To find this poster, tucked away during restoration works, feels especially fitting in a building so rooted in shared cultural memory," a spokesperson said.

The Academy Award-winning film which starred Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers tells the true story of orphaned lioness cub Elsa, who was raised by conservationists Joy and George Adamson before being returned to the wild.

Paignton Picture House is thought to be one of the oldest remaining purpose-built cinemas in Europe and is due to reopen later this year after the restoration project.

Crime writer Agatha Christie, who had a home near Brixham, was a regular cinema-goer and had her own reserved seat at the venue.

The cinema closed in 1999, but the renovation scheme aims to have it screen films again as well as opening up for community events.

Torbay Council has committed more than £2m from its Future High Streets fund towards the work.

Among the latest stages, specialist plasterers have been at work in the balcony, while the auditorium ceiling has received its first coat of paint.

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