A journey through time

As a child, John Bell played films to his fellow school pupils on a toy projector made from cardboard and a lightbulb.

He would project comics from books purchased at his local dairy in Wellington.

“I’d cut the comics into strips and stick them together like a toilet roll,” he recalls. “I’d have to buy two copies of each issue because they were double-sided pages.”

Now John enjoys showing films out of Time Cinema, a private theatre he and wife Margaret established in Wellington’s Lyall Bay 35 years ago.

Audience members enjoy a truly historic cinema experience, starting with the national anthem God Save the Queen and followed by historic news reels and advertisements selling cars for a couple of hundred pounds. An old cartoon or documentary is then shown and after intermission, guests can enjoy a feature film from John’s collection sourced from old film libraries.

Movies range from the 1930s through to the 60s and John’s earliest footage dates back to the late 1890s. 

There’s also a private museum on site showcasing early cinematic equipment and posters of film stars like Charlie Chaplin.

Guests liken the experience to going back in time, John says.