Our history
Did you know…
The Elgiva is named after Lady Elgiva, wife of Saxon King Edwy and the daughter of Ethelgiva (murdered during the constitutional crisis of 957-8), she was sister to Ethelwerd (who wrote the Latin Chronicle). Lady Elgiva created the first record of Chesham in bequeathing her estate of ‘Caesteleshamm’ to the abbey at Abingdon in 970 AD and concise studies place her life and actions within the context of Saxon England and reveals the importance of her legacy for the history of Buckinghamshire and, in particular, Chesham.
The Elgiva Hall
The Elgiva Hall opened on its original location in 1976. In 1998, having made way for an enlarged supermarket development the New Elgiva was rebuilt as a purpose-built theatre and cinema on its current site, with the official reopening performed by Danny La Rue!
Today’s Elgiva Theatre is a 300 seated / 400 standing capacity theatre, with a digital cinema and is owned and managed by Chesham Town Council. The Elgiva presents a wide-ranging programme of professional and amateur productions, top comedy, musicals, ballet/dance, one night shows, a professional pantomime, an eclectic range of movies, exhibitions, weddings and other public and private events.
Chesham on film
The Elgiva programme includes a huge variety of independent film. Chesham itself has featured in many films and TV programmes in the past. Here’s just a few (thanks to Wikipedia)…
The Professionals
Close Quarters (1978) – Hundridge Manor
Hammer House of Horror
Carpathian Eagle (1980) – Lowndes Park
The Silent Scream (1980) – 68 Broad Street
Inspector Morse
The Day of the Devil (1993) – High Street
Midsomer Murders
The Axeman Cometh (2007) – Market Sq
Written in Blood (1997) – High St and Old Town
Sins of Commission – High St
Things that Go Bump in the Night (2004) – Market Sq
The Black Book (2009) – 15 Market Sq
The Sword of Guillaume (2010) High St, Broadway War Memorial
Nuzzle and Scratch (2009)
CBeebies programme, Toy Shop episode filmed on the high street outside Harvey Johns
Scoop (2009) – High Street and Town
Chucklevision
Well Suited (2000) – High Street (opening scene)
Black Mirror
The National Anthem (2011) – desolate shots of the High Street and of an area near The Vale are shown near the end
The Imitation Game (2014) – 73 Church Street appears as Alan Turing’s lodging house in Bletchley, and also appears briefly in the Dirk Bogarde vehicle The Password Is Courage (1962)
