Archibald Hurley Robinson

Who is Archibald Hurley Robinson?

Archibald Hurley Robinson F.R.I.B.A., known as Hurley Robinson, was a prolific British architect of cinemas prior to World War II. Following World War II, the demand for new cinemas had diminished and his work focussed more on office buildings. He set up his own practice which was initially called Hurley Robinson & Sons and then renamed Hurley Robinson & Partners, which were both based in Birmingham, England.

Robinson's work on cinemas was mainly during the 1930s. His cinemas were mainly of the Art Deco style that was popularly used by Oscar Deutsch for his Odeon Cinemas. A lot of Robinson's work was commissioned in the Midlands area of England.

Hurley Robinson remodelled the Salters' Hall in Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire to become a cinema in 1933. This was again altered to become a library in 1982. He also designed the Ritz Cinema in Bordesley Green, Birmingham. A pre-World War II work by Robinson was the Lee Longlands furniture store on Broad Street, Birmingham. This was completed in 1931, and is a rare example of a building that was not a cinema by Robinson before the war. The building was extended in 1939. Another example of a pre-World War II work by Hurley Robinson is the Kent Street Baths in Birmingham which was built between 1931 and 1933. The Art Deco baths survived, unused, until September 2009. His Sparkhill Baths, from the same era, still stand. Hurley Robinson also designed the Dudley Hippodrome theatre, which was built in 1938.