AFTER the final credits of The Lord of the Rings had rolled, staff at The Robins said their last tearful goodbyes, switched off the lights, and filed quietly out.

Their subdued departure was in marked contrast to when the cinema first opened as The Regal in 1934.

Then, a fanfare of trumpets and a blaze of lights made way for a dazzling display on the Christie organ, thought to be the height of luxury for a small cinema.

But now, after even a 2,000-signature petition failed to save it, staff and local people are resigned to their loss.

The cinema's lease has been transferred to Regent Inns, who are to convert it to a Walkabout Australian theme pub, leaving Durham with only the large-screen cinema at the Gala Theatre, which cannot show mainstream films.

Brenda Ryder, manager of The Robins, said that despite knowing of the closure for months, the staff were devastated.

"Even though we knew it was going to happen, everyone's really emotional," she said. "We keep having outbreaks of tears and everyone's just really sad."

Of the cinema's 21 staff, so far only three have found other jobs. Among them is front of house manager Dale Ballentyne, who will take over as general manager of The Robins in Camberley, Surrey.

Mr Ballentyne, 20, from Durham, said: "I've been coming to the cinema from way back and I studied film and television at college, so I thought it would be great to get a job here.

"I started as an usher three-and-a-half years ago.

"Something good has come out of this for me but I would much prefer to have stayed here.

"I've always thought of The Robins as a very friendly cinema and the staff are more friends than colleagues. We are all devastated."

While the closure may seem final, it is not the first time the cinema has shut - only to be reopened under new ownership.

After being closed by Cannon in 1990, it was bought by its current owner, Troveworth, for £500,000 in 1991.

The Robins spent £250,000 on alterations and obtained funding for a fourth screen, before reopening the cinema with a fanfare later the same year.

But the threat of a multiplex cinema on the Walkergate site - which failed to come to fruition - and the declining state of the building ultimately conspired to seal its fate.

David Williams, a former Durham University lecturer in film studies and author of the soon-to-be-published Cinema in a Cathedral City 1896-2003, said: "The Robins was a good local cinema and it was well run.

"Not having a cinema in a place where entertainment needs to be local is a mistake."

Even now, a faint glimmer of hope remains - with the prospect that The Robins could take over the former Palladium on Claypath.

But Robins manager Brenda Ryder was cautious in her optimism.

"It would be great if it did happen but as far as I'm aware, a cinema is just one of a number of options that the owners are looking into," she said