Huge cranes have started taking most of the former Odeon Cinema building at the corner of Renfield Street and West Regent Street.

The £60million project will transform the B-listed venue into a 10-storey office and retail block.

Key roads in the city centre were closed in order for work to be carried out and West Regent Street from Renfield Street to West Nile Street, and West Nile Street between Bath Street and West George Street were sealed off. However, these routes were expected to reopen at 6am today.

The former Odeon cinema and Paramount music venue, which originally opened in 1934, played host to some of the biggest stars of the day, from the Beatles to the Rolling Stones and Cliff Richard.

The 2800-seat venue, originally called the Paramount, became a landmark with its art deco lobby and white granite curved facade.

It closed in 2006 and has lain empty since.

Campaigners had begun a bid to rescue the space, which drew interest from music show producer Sir Cameron Mackintosh.

Last April the Evening Times told how Sir Cameron hoped to turn the former cinema into a theatre and had commissioned sketches of how this could look.

At the time, he said: "The last large auditorium is the old Odeon.

"I have come up with a scheme where you could put a wonderful 2000-seater there, but the city doesn't seem to want it.

"I would certainly contribute money towards it."

The development is the first new-build of its kind in the city centre in almost five years, and will help tackle an acute shortage of quality, modern office accommodation in the area.

Shop units are also planned for the ground floor and construction work on the 143,000sq ft of Grade A office and retail space is expected to be completed in the run-up to Christmas 2014.

While the developers Mountgrange and PRUPIM are doing away with the cinema's red brick auditorium, the historic art deco facade and foyer in Renfield Street are being saved.

Its construction is creating about 130 jobs.

matty.sutton@eveningtimes.co.uk