In 1957, an airport located three miles from the city centre of Bristol closed and flights in and out of the city were moved to the new Bristol Airport, located at Lulsgate. The Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport, which was only in service for 27 years, was located at what is now Hengrove Park.
Whilst part of the runway remains today, the rest of the site, which is surrounded by housing estates, was separated off into several developments including the South Bristol Community Hospital and the Hengrove Park Leisure Centre. A leisure park, called Hengrove Leisure Park, was also established at the former airport site, in the late 1990s.
In its heyday, you’d find a number of different restaurants and fast food establishments, but the leisure park’s main attraction was the cinema. The Cineworld cinema, which boasted 14 screens, was an indication that the Hengrove Leisure Park was an area worth going to, as at the time, most leisure parks would have a statement entertainment complex, whether a bowling alley, cinema or likewise.
The park also contained Gala Bingo, a big bingo hall located in the south-east corner of the site. However, the park, located just off the A4174 ring road, also contained a Frankie & Benny’s and an Oriental Buffet Restaurant.
In 2024, the leisure park feels eerie and is a lot emptier than what it used to be. Whilst some establishments remain, including the KFC and McDonalds drive-thrus, Premier Inn with a Brewers Fayre, known as the Wessex Flyer, and a Domino’s (which has replaced the Oriental Buffet), many of the buildings, in particular in the south-east corner, are now vacant.
The bingo hall, which was rebranded as a Buzz Bingo, closed on Sunday, January 28. Frankie & Benny’s also remains vacant as doors are boarded up and the iconic signage long-removed.
It has been nearly a year since the Cineworld last welcomed movie-goers, as the cinema closed on November 26, 2023. Domino’s Pizza remains and is located within half of the former Oriental Buffet, but will be forced to close as the building is set to be demolished. Domino’s Pizza was approached for comment.
Hengrove Leisure Park will be redeveloped into a new housing complex of 350 new homes. The plans were revealed in 2020 and approved in 2021, meaning that the empty buildings which hold memories for generations of Bristolians will soon be gone for good.
It is not to say that the leisure park will disappear altogether though, the KFC, McDonalds and Premier Inn will remain, as will the Costa Coffee with its drive-thru. It is also understood that the diagonal pedestrian path, which links the entrance of the park to the existing playground and former airfield, will remain.
Hengrove Leisure Park will soon look very different once new homes are built on the site, which will also mark another part of the former Whitchurch Airport site being long forgotten. The irony is that the Hengrove Leisure Park, with the cinema, was part of a major regeneration of the BS13 area, but now will disappear as part of a different regeneration.
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