Tarpots Post Office post card dated May 1936

This postcard of Tarpots post office has cinema billboards outside it which give several clues as to when it was taken. The relevant billboards have been enlarged and while not clear it is possible to see what is written which can then be checked elsewhere.

The first item on top of the billboards is the words “Kingsway Cinema”. The Kingsway cinema in Hadleigh was opened on 27th April 1936 . So the postcard has to be later than then.

The billboards then display three films which are showing. However, it is not possible to work out the date for when this was.

The first film is  “I Cover the Waterfront” which starred Claudette Colbert and was an American film. It was very popular and first came out in 1933. This could be a re-release.

The second film is “On Probation“. This was produced in 1935 in America but released in the UK on 27th April 1936 the same day that the Kingsway cinema opened.

The third film is a British production called “Hope of His Side” which was released in London on the 19th August 1935 as “Where’s George?“. However, King George V died on 20th January 1936  and the film title was considered disrespectful so it was relaunched as “Hope of His Side” in the UK on the 20th January 1936. The star mentioned on the boards is Sydney Howard who was a big British star at the the time.

A further clue for dating is that it is a postcard. These would have to be produced for the coming holiday season. The photo had to be taken, printed as postcards and distributed to local shops before Summer.

All these clues suggest that the photo was taken in early May 1936.