future Palace neighbour created in 1904 out of the Grand National Halls, were built and owned by John Morrison as part of his development of tenements close to Gorbals Cross when the city was becoming the Second City of Empire. His building firm Morrison & Mason Ltd became one of the largest in the country, building the City Chambers, Stock Exchange, Queens Dock and much more. As Her Majesty's Theatre and Royal Opera House, he leased it to James F McFadyen, who had studied at Glasgow University and then became a lessee of theatres in England. The theatre seated 2,500, and presented plays, revues and pantomimes. Reflecting the quality of Morrison's work the new building was very safety conscious, substantially built; with fire hydrants on each level and on stage. The stairways were extremely wide and the lobbies spacious. Morrison commissioned sculptor John Mossman to create the six statues which adorned the roof line, above the classical columns of the facade. A year later, in December 1879, the lease changed to H Cecil Beryl who changed the name to the long running title of Royal Princess's Theatre For over twenty years the pantomimes staged by Beryl were written by Fred Locke. After seven years Beryl assumed a business partner Rich Waldon who would soon take over and buy the theatre from the builder. Waldon was also a writer and producer of pantomimes. By 1914 Rich Waldon was the busiest theatre operator with five theatres in the city - the Royal Princess's, the Palace, the Lyceum in Govan, the Pavilion and the West End Playhouse/Empress On his death in 1922 he bequeathed the Royal Princess's to his deputy Harry McKelvie who as a boy had started as a bill poster for him and now was the mastermind behind each year's longest running pantomime in the United Kingdom. 1923 saw a major modernisation of the auditorium which was now fully carpeted and the walls finished in wood panelling. Late each Spring each pantomime, having completed its long run in Gorbals, would then tour round other venues in Scotland and England under McKelvie, who was also a shareholder and director of the Olympia Theatre, Bridgeton Cross. In the 1930s the next door neighbour variety-house the Palace was converted to a cinema and after television started it became a bingo hall. When Harry McKelvie let it be known he was retiring in 1944 he