LeisureLeisure
Aberdeen has a beautiful theatre called His Majesty's Theatre. It is called His Majesty's Theatre and not Her Majesty's Theatre because when it was opened in 1906 Britain had a king. The very first performance at the Theatre was the pantomime Little Red Riding Hood. Today, the annual Christmas pantomime is still one of the most popular shows at the HMT.
The Music Hall, on Union Street opened in 1822. As its name suggests, it has been the place Aberdonians go to for concerts ever since including classical music, folk, jazz and pop. But it's not all music. Films, comedy routines, variety shows and even science have taken to the stage there.
Aberdeen is known as the Silver City with the Golden Sands. The name comes from the
silver granite used in its buildings and Aberdeen's long sandy beach. Generations of Aberdonians relaxed on the beach. The beach is still popular. There are lots of things to do there. You can go for a walk, play on the sand, eat an ice cream or just stare out to sea. There's also a fun fair, leisure pool and cinema. Cinemas today are multi-complex (several screens).
There used to be lots of cinemas or picturehouses in Aberdeen but each had only one very large screen. The old cinemas have been demolished or are now used for other things such as a gym or bingo hall.
Related Timelines
- Look at the picture of Aberdeen Beach. There are lots of people there. Can you think of reasons why Aberdeen beach might have been a more popular holiday location in the past than it is today? Think of travel and wages.
- Today there is a leisure pool at the beach. In the past there was a different swimming pool. Look at the timeline and work out where the first swimming pool at the beach was located.
- Think about what you do in your spare time. Would you have been able to do these things 100 years ago?
