OT - What Movies You're Watching and Watched.

[Romanis]

yeah good point, went a bit Donald there

Now this is a bit strange, I was just reading an Agatha Christie book, set in the 1920s, where the British guy corrects the American, who says cinema when going to catch a movie. In the UK, it's called theatre!

Obviously in this age, I would associate theatre with plays and the like and more American. Cinema would the UK version.
But was really the other way round back in the day?

[Andy_Faber]

Now this is a bit strange, I was just reading an Agatha Christie book, set in the 1920s, where the British guy corrects the American, who says cinema when going to catch a movie. In the UK, it's called theatre!

Obviously in this age, I would associate theatre with plays and the like and more American. Cinema would the UK version.
But was really the other way round back in the day?

THEatre is where English folk go and watch plays, theAYTER is where my yankee pals go to watch movies and gigs

[Romanis]

THEatre is where English folk go and watch plays, theAYTER is where my yankee pals go to watch movies and gigs

Yes, yes to all that. In fact Americans call it movies and as such going to a movie theatre. Here we go watch 'pictures' at the cinema.

But my question is, in the 1920s did we call it (going to the pictures) as the theatre? And a place to watch plays was also the theatre.
And did them Yankees called it cinema (kinema I believe was how they called it) at first and reverted to theatre later on, while we adopted the word cinema as it refers to today, leaving the theatre solely for plays and the like?

Just curious that's all. Anyone knows?