YOUR Argus is the official newspaper of the Newbridge Memo's bid to win the BBC's Restoration programme and the £3m prize that goes with it. KEVIN WARD and GARETH LLewellyn take a look at its history and how Gwent people can vote for a return to the glory day.

A century ago the average weekly wage for a miner was just £3 a week and most pitmen lived in rented homes.

Yet a group of miners from Newbridge risked everything to take out a £6,000 mortgage to build the Celynen Collieries Institute and Memorial Hall - affectionately known as the Newbridge Memo.

Now you can help restore it to its former glory - and it won't cost more than the price of a phone call.

In 1898 the miners from the local Celynen Collery wanted to build an institute to provide social and educational facilities for their community. Many such institutes were built throughout the coal mining valleys of South Wales using the Miners Welfare Fund.

The unique element in Newbridge was the courage of the miners in taking out their own mortgage and paying for the building via subs taken from their wages.

The institute, built in 1908, was soon followed by a Memorial Hall, built in 1926 to commemorate the local men who served in the First World War, in particular the 75 who never made it home.

The Memorial Hall houses a magnificent art deco dance hall and 700-seat theatre/ cinema and was the focus of the community for more than 70 years.

The dance hall played host to some of the biggest musical acts of the 20th century, from band leader Joe Loss to Eighties heart-throbs Duran Duran.

As the mines closed through the Eighties, so the Memo suffered a long period of decline and eventually both the Memorial Hall and the institute were forced to close.

But tomorrow the doors to the Memo's spectacular art deco cinema will be open for the first time in more than 30 years as the drive to restore the building to its former glories begin in earnest.

The Memo is one of three Welsh buildings in the running for the £3 million first prize offered by the BBC's Restoration programme.

On July 20 presenter Gryff Rhys Jones will give viewers the chance to vote for the Memo to win a place in the August live national final.

The £3m first prize will be enough to complete the renovation of the Memo and put it back at the heart of the Newbridge community.

Tomorrow an open day will give people a guided tour of the entire building and make them aware of the enormous potential it has.

Visitors are welcome from noon and organisers are promising to provide entertainment for all generations up until 8pm.

Live music will be provided in the dance hall by the Newbridge & District Ladies Choir, the Celynen Silver Band, local rock group 'Outbreak' and an African drum troupe.

The Friends of Newbridge Memo, which is a registered charity, was established last year as a last-ditch attempt to save the building after years of neglect had taken its toll.

Chairman Howard Stone said: "We want people to be able to experience the theatre for themselves as it is now so that they can appreciate the once lavish interiors and have the opportunity to become involved in its restoration."