ABOVE: An atmospheric view of the Apollo foyer Photograph: Scottish Screen Archive Collection.

Their fairground origins meant that Green's were more self-sufficient than many other companies and already had in-house many of the skills needed to build The Playhouse, Bert Green designed the seats for which Green's own foundry cast the metalwork, the plants and flowers decorating the cinema came from Green's conservatory and they filmed their own newsreels.

Although Green's workforce did much of the work, 45 specialist outside contractors were also involved including well-known Glasgow firms Guthrie and Wells, responsible for the painted decoration and Toffolo Jackson who created the marble and terrazzo work, all under the supervision of George Green's sons Fred and Bert.

Some 16,000 tons of cement went into the reinforced concrete foundations and together with a quarter of a million bricks and special girders they created what was described at the time as "the strongest building in Glasgow", indeed it was claimed that the girders were so strong and wide that they could carry a railway engine although this idea doesn't seem to have been tested!.

The cinema was built behind an existing frontage onto Renfield Street facing the Pavilion Theatre and was given a marquee canopy made of worked bronze which ran

the entire length of the 96ft frontage. The vertical Playhouse sign was 40ft tall, visible from the bottom of Renfield Street and had the lettering picked out in individual light bulbs as was common in America, possibly noted by John Fairweather on his United States tour.

Through the triple mahogany doors and into the black and white paved entrance vestibule - in the centre stood the box office complete with mahogany panels and ornate carved cornice - and on to lifts built by John Bennie of Glasgow and claimed to be "as safe as human ingenuity can make them". The Grand Staircase, 15ft wide and built almost entirely of Sicilian marble, took patrons to the Sunshine Cafe or up to the boxes, balconies or Golden Divans, designed to appeal to courting couples.

The auditorium in the neo-classical style with its impressive Corinthian columns was decorated in a subtle colour scheme or orange and primrose, the total seating was 4,368 although when the ballroom and tearooms were also full The Playhouse could hold an incredible 10,000 people.

Green’s Playhouse had limited stage facilities to provide a prologue to the main film or for the Playhouse Dancers who appeared for a short season in 1928.