The Coronet Cinema building opened in New Kent Road on 31 May 1879 as the Elephant and Castle Theatre, on the site of an earlier theatre that burnt down on 26 March 1878. The original theatre had opened in 1872, erected as a public hall but never completed – instead, it was converted into a theatre.

The theatre was converted into the Elephant and Castle cinema, which opened in 1931 with 2,315 seats. The 1954 Kinematograph Year Book reports 1,905 seats. After modernisation it became the ABC on 9 October 1967, showing Bonny and Clyde.

The ABC closed for tripling on 25 January 1981, reopening on 7 May with Funhouse and My Bloody Valentine in the 648 seat Screen 1, Ordinary People in 286 seat Screen 2 and Elephant Man in 220 seat Screen 3.

The ABC became the Coronet in 1987 and closed in 1999. The Coronet has reopened intermittently since then to show seasons of films (the Eelefest local film festival, among others) and host concerts.