Winifred Holtby (1898 – 1935) wrote a total of seven novels, of which The Crowded Street is her best-known work. She was also a prolific journalist and often wrote about the cinema. She died aged 37 from kidney disease and her final novel, South Riding, was published posthumously in 1936.

In the extract below, set during the first year of World War One, Muriel Hammond travels from a small Yorkshire town with her sister Connie to the city of Kingsport (based on Hull) to visit the fictional Palace Picture Theatre.