A treasure trove of old posters found at The Mowlem during the 2020 lockdown is set to be framed and displayed thanks to a new fundraising campaign launched today. The posters, thought to date back to the 1930s, had been stored in a box along with dozens of old programmes and flyers for decades before being rediscovered in a store cupboard.
A new Crowdfunder campaign hopes to see each poster sponsored by local businesses and individuals, with the money raised used to pay for framing and any additional proceeds to help brighten up The Mowlem’s Showbar. Each poster promoted shows put on by Swanage Drama and Music Society, which no longer exists. However, the Swanage Drama Company and Swanage Musical Theatre Society still put on successful shows each year on the theatre’s stage.
Once framed, the posters will be permanently displayed in The Showbar, open six evenings a week and welcoming the general public and theatregoers.
Paul Angel, Chair of the Board, speaking on behalf of The Mowlem’s Trustees, said:
“These posters are a wonderful piece of Swanage history; amazingly, they’ve survived. They date back to the period before the present building was built, and we’d love to know if anybody remembers any of the local names which appear on them. Maybe they still have relatives living in the town. The Showbar is already popular because of the stunning views over Swanage Bay, and all profits from the bar and kiosk go towards maintaining The Mowlem as a public venue. We want to make it an even lovelier venue for locals to visit.”
The fundraising is part of the ‘160 for 160’ campaign, which aims to raise £160,000 to celebrate the 160th anniversary of the founding of The Mowlem Institute charity. It follows the successful launch of the Take Your Seat campaign, which has already seen over 30 seats sponsored by local people.
All the posters can be seen on The Mowlem’s Crowdfunder page at
www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/mowlem-theatre-poster-framing or through a link on The Mowlem’s website at www.themowlem.com