Situated on Chiswick High Road, the Old Cinema is an unexpected treat amongst the coffee shops and chain restaurants. From the outside, it looks like an old-fashioned cinema that may have once showed silent films (in fact, the building was previously a picture palace dating back over 100 years). Instead of cinema seating and the smell of buttery popcorn, this quirky department store holds a collection of retro furniture and vintage gifts to please the designer in each of us.
Wandering around the Old Cinema is like walking around the back set of a Hollywood movie studio. Rather than decorate rooms with the precision of an IKEA room display, the store groups items loosely in the showrooms and allows customers to explore the treasures individually. The Old Cinema sources items from all time periods and from a large number of countries, so a clock that looks like it might come from a 50s roadside American diner can sit above a delicate Edwardian writing desk.
In 2012 the popular BBC programme 'The Apprentice' filmed here as part of a task. Perhaps even Lord Sugar is a fan of the shop?
Although I cannot readily afford most items here, I enjoy imagining how I would decorate my own flat if I ever won the lottery. I have my eye on old signs from the London Underground; I just need to buy a place big enough to fit them all in!
160 Chiswick High Road W4 1PR
Buckets:
£
28
+44
2089954166
Find your way with 222 Insider Tips from our Local Spotters
The people of Bonnington Square really know how to foster a vibe with leafy exotic plants spraying scattered shadows as you sit and eat...
by
From focaccia to pasta, coffee to cake, this one-stop shop is as much a place to buy your brew and bread as it is to have a lunchtime bite of pasta...
by
Of all the reasons why you have to check out this idyllic boozer, perhaps the most important is that this is the home of the finest scotch egg in London.
by
Birds sing while trains rumble along atop the parallel railway arches, old men play boule in the shade and planes skim overhead on approach to Heathrow.
by
From the run-down chic aesthetic to the strong beer selection and excellent pub garden, there are no chinks in the Dog House's armour...
by
Inside, the bar is a welcoming, tightly-packed vibe with old-fashioned, old-world decor with gorgeous bare wood surfaces & countless pictures on the walls.
by
The unassuming, retro signage outside amidst the noise & din of Waterloo might pull you in, but what makes you stay is the genuine town tavern feel inside.
by
With a rustic French feel, Pierre offers dishes with rich red-wine sauces and tasty meats from much of the spectrum of the French culinary roster.
by
With old-fashioned vintage Guinness branding adoring just about every surface, this is the ideal spot to take a moment and enjoy a perfectly-poured pint.
by
Built back in 2010 on the site of a disused railway line, it’s a local secret: a quiet, forest-like space to retreat to when city life becomes overwhelming.
by
Inside, the rooms have distinctly different decorative styles. This is to give an idea of how the house would have looked at each stage in its history.
by
222 Insider Tips from our local Spotters
Authentic Stories by Real People
Escape the Crowd & Travel Slow 🐌
✓ 0 Insider Tips from our local Spotters
✓ 222 Insider Tips