As always, thanks for providing such detailed info, that is some great drilling down you’ve managed there! ;o)
You’re welcome! :–) I do my best, it’s always good to get positive feedback. ;–)
The four VIP boxes at the very back of the auditoria are not as great as they may sound
They sound like an incredibly stupid idea to me, actually. ;–)
The rear wall should be heavily acoustically damped; having large areas of glass to reflect sound (and, even if to a rather modest extent relatively, image) back is not good for those in the auditorium.
Each box has it’s own 5.1 surround sound system.
Interesting. I can’t imagine this works too well, since the speakers won’t be in the correct location spatially?
It also obliterates one of the major benefits a large auditorium has over a living room (well, unless your living room has dimensions exceeding, say, 50ft.+ ;–)—namely, freedom from low frequencies being dominated by room modes (resonances.)
But then again, I can’t imagine that anyone booking seats in the boxes is too interested in optimum seating locations… ;–)
it’s a shame that there’s no VIP seat option outside of the VIP boxes (2/3 the way back as in most Vue cinemas).
Talking of which, IME, the position of the VIP seats in the Vue Xtreme auditoria I’ve visited are altogether too far back.
I’ve posted estimates of relative seating positions to the screen width for Vue O2 Finchley Road, and certainly that auditorium hardly qualifies as “large format,” if the criteria is based on the basic “classic” IMAX geometry standards. I guess “caveat emptor” with screens marketed as “PLF”!
Incidentally, apparently these “old” screen width to seating position ratio standards were actually based on tests using 35mm film in the 1950s (!), being set so that the audience would be far enough away from the screen such that the artifacts of film and projection thereof—i.e. grain, weave, etc.—would not be overly perceptible! Whereas, the “classic” IMAX standards are, I think, based more around creating an immersive system given human physiology/perception, i.e. in a sense the system is built more from the perspective of achieving a quality immersive experience, rather than around the limitations of an existent—and in the theatrical world now more or less obsolete—format.
Don’t know what brand the rear array speakers are but I shall try to get a closer look or ask a member of staff the next time I watch a movie there which might be soon.
Thanks. :–) I think they’re QSC, actually; I was confused as my initial thought was that they might be JBL, but the relevant model was not available when the cinema was built—and I can’t imagine the sound system was upgraded, without otherwise an overall refurbishment of the auditorium occurring, and even then I’d be surprised if they bothered to replace the rears (unless, perhaps, if upgrading to Atmos?)
Not sure how well this cinema is doing compared to Empire, High Wycombe but I’ve rarely ever seen it busy or packed.
Seems to me the area is overscreened, certainly on the basis of multiplexes per capita in the UK and the population of High Wycombe per se?
I can imagine that in the earlier days of multiplexes that the CIC/UCI High Wycombe would draw in trade from a wide catchment as, if I’m not mistaken, there was very little in the way of local competition.
I guess the idea behind Eden was to create a regional retail/leisure facility, but there’s competition on that front, such as the “new” The Lexicon Bracknell, which of course is also home to a Cineworld.
On the M40/A40 corridor, the Odeon Uxbridge IMAX and the fairly recently opened Cineworld South Ruislip would obviate the need (or possible even draw in business from High Wycombe and environs in the case of the IMAX due to the brand?) to head out to High Wycombe for the purpose of a cinema trip.
Regarding parking costs, planning policy effectively “forced” new leisure development to predominantly be in city/town centres. You can probably guess my view on those policies from the last sentence, but I’ll avoid further comment here as this isn’t a site for “political” debates—but suffice to say, with cinema ticket prices as they are, in most locations (i.e. not Central London and environs—and if one were crazy enough to park off Leicester Square, it would cost just as much as a premium cinema ticket at West End prices!) paying for additional parking charges doesn’t seem reasonable.
Shame that you aren’t able to get the off-peak discounts that were previously available. :–(
I’d expect Cineworld, across their entire UK estate, to have done their homework though? (I think their priority is on their “Unlimited” card…)
ritzman: That would be nice, but given the “large format” — possibly Dolby Cinema — screen slated for the refurbished OLS, I wouldn’t get my hopes up—at least not in the original location!
It will be interesting to see just how much plasterwork is retained or reinstated. The auditorium as it was would need a lot of acoustic treatment were it to be brought closer to current “new build” standards.
Of course, the forms could be recreated to a lesser or greater degree of exactitude using modern materials, as was the panelling around the “golden ladies” in the late 90s refurb using, AFAIK, stretched fabric panels, where wooden panelling was originally used.
Incidentally, Eomac—the company that seemingly supplies stretched fabric profiles and textiles to just about every new or refurbished cinema on the planet, also offer acoustic wood products.
Acoustic plaster solutions also exist, e.g. Quietspray (no idea if that would be suitable or not to recreate the 1930s forms, but as an example of a plaster system that has good acoustic absorption performance.)
I suppose all depends in part on just how much money Odeon are willing to throw at the project, and ability to diverge from the path of least resistance, for non-obligatory heritage reasons.
Update: The LSQ scaffolding has been covered over with fire retardant sheets; I did take some photos, but thinking about it, it really isn’t very interesting! However, it may suggest that work is now progressing to the foyer/facade phase.
Incidentally, if I’m not mistaken, the location where the top of this shot is cropped (at the screen end of the auditorium) is somewhere around where the ceiling of the old Empire 1 was.
I attended a screening of “Mission Impossible—Fallout” in the IMAX auditorium today, having booked my ticket at the “last minute” (by which I mean, just enough time to get to the cinema some minutes before the auditorium doors were opened!)
This was foolish in that I did not consider whether the film was worth seeing—albeit, its current Rotten Tomatoes score is 97%(!)—so “research” may not have been of any assistance!
It turns out that the film IS worth seeing—but, IMO, only for the visuals in the final act. Set in Kashmir, numerous stunning shots of mountainous terrain in “full height” IMAX Digital (1.9:1) are featured, presumably digitally acquired (CGI aside) using Panavision Millennium DXLs (8K source format) per IMDb Technical Specifications.
Full use of the 12 channel IMAX sound system was apparent in these scenes, e.g. strongly directional helicopter sounds panned overhead.
(Picture quality-wise, the rest of the film is lacking in detail with poor depth of field and I assume was mostly acquired on 35mm film per IMDb Technical Specifications, although no grain was apparent, suggesting heavy noise reduction.)
IMAX auditorium update:
I’m not sure if it was the fault of the source material, but there was a marked absence of low level detail throughout the film, with dark areas clipped to black. Some low level dither seemed to be visible in one or two 1.9:1 scenes in the final act. Subtle “laser speckle” was also apparent momentarily a couple of times.
Today’s outside temperature was ~30°C, and the HVAC system was working extremely well with the auditorium very well chilled and unstuffy for the late afternoon screening I attended, as were the foyer areas.
On the left splay wall, the front bottom two LED bars were misaligned. (Photo uploaded.)
Also, my perception was that the colour-changing LEDs have lost some brightness, which is odd since even allowing for 5 hours of use/day, they would not even have hit the 10,000 hour mark, and the bars use OSRAM LEDs which have outstanding performance in terms of brightness maintenance with use. Perhaps they are being driven hard? With 171 RGB bars, and given a retail price of, say, £200+ each, one does wonder whether Cineworld will bother with long term upkeep/replacement. Regular LED strips just wouldn’t be bright enough to illuminate the large areas of black walls/ceiling, which the current system already struggles with. I overheard a kid sitting behind making a comment on the “magical lighting,” so clearly it’s effective in adding a special touch for those with no awareness of the heritage aspect.
AFAICT, one or more of the subbass drivers bottomed out during one of the trailers; if this represents failure, hopefully IMAX will action replacement(s).
Cineworld (Empire) Leicester Square update:
The building site notice still appears on the fire exit door to Leicester Street.
To add to ongoing observations of extreme minutiae, the left wall of the lower vestibule (i.e. underneath the section leading to the 4DX) now has black strips added. (Photo uploaded.) Interestingly (?), if it’s the same product visible in fit-out photos of Cineworld Broughton—see Image 1 and Image 2—these black strips might not actually be PMMA (aka Perspex/Plexiglass,) but Alupanel.
Empire Cinemas' registered office is, as of November 2017, 63-65 Haymarket. The “10 – Empire Studios” sign remains by the entrance to the upper level offices on the Leicester Place frontage, although no signs of activity were externally visible, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to assume that they’ve vacated.
[Added text to overcome “Your comment appears to be spam!” notification which appeared on reposting with minor edits. And some more text for another repost. :–(]
Estimating the Auditorium 8 (aka “Vue Xtreme,”) based on the screen size given in Vue’s press release (linked to above) and the screen as drawn on the plans, the auditorium measures approximately 19m wide by 26.5m deep (or ~62ft. x ~87ft.)
The front row is ~0.35 screen width from the screen, whilst to keep within the classic IMAX criteria of no more than the screen width from the screen, it is necessary to sit no further back than the second row of the steeply raked section (the front 5 rows are on a flatter rake.)
The second row of the “VIP seats” is ~1.2x screen width away from the screen, and the rearmost row of all the seats ~1.65x.
Not to say that there’s anything “wrong” (or “right”) about the auditorium—it might be a black box, but I think it’s pretty good in terms of build (e.g. acoustic isolation and absorption)—but just to compare it to classic IMAX criteria for horizontal viewing angles/“immersiveness.”
Passed by Cineworld (Empire) LSQ yesterday; alas “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” was playing in the IMAX/Superscreen. :–(
(ABBA, like them or not, have gifted the world with a large repertoire of popular songs written and arranged to a very high standard, many of which are classics, and I have no interest in watching/hearing them being mutilated in a corny sequel!)
Cineworld are now branding LSQ as “London’s premiere destination and home to the stars,” on the screen nearest to the entrance (mounted on the right side wall of the lower vestibule), with clips of various premiere/“red carpet” events being shown. (Photo uploaded.)
The only external sign of ongoing building work remains the “Construction Site” notice on the exterior of the Leicester Street fire exit doors.
Empire Cinemas' registered address has been changed to 63-65 Haymarket, aka Empire Haymarket. The “Empire Studios” sign remains by the the entrance door facing Leicester Place.
bigjoe59: Regarding the Cinerama you refer to, that format/system existed way before my time—but perhaps you mean the location that was originally, and is today, named the “Prince Edward Theatre”? It’s about 100 metres (on foot) from Shaftesbury Avenue.
Photos of the auditorium in Cinerama guise and a (somewhat crudely drawn!) plan (with the three projector locations marked) can be seen, as well as a plan for the change to a single projector setup/replacement screen in 1974. Lists of three strip and single strip programming are also included.
Whatever the merits of Cinerama by today’s standards, the 1954 alterations look disastrous—aesthetically and yielding a technically substandard auditorium (in terms of acoustics, seating locations relative to the screen, etc.) Fascinating history, though…!
External scaffolding has now been erected on the Leicester Square facade. As far as I could tell, the foyer areas are in the same stripped state as previous posts, with what I assume to be the underside of the circle stadia still visible.
Video and photo gallery showing the IMAX auditorium virtually completed, another auditorium before the screen has been installed (with a test card projected on the acoustic absorption and QSC stage speakers on the floor in front!), booths including IMAX digital and Barco projectors, and foyer/lobby areas under fit-out.
The screen in the IMAX appears to be on the relatively modest side (at least by the ~90ft. wide screens I’m used to!), and indeed according to a case study by the company that installed the alarm/access control/CCTV systems (!) it measures 17mx9m (~56x29.5ft.) It does, however, feature very nice looking seating.
This planning application would appear to be relevant as the previous application was outline only and the summary descriptions of later variation applications do not mention any changes to Block M1 (in which the cinema is located.)
Plans for the cinema auditoria can be seen in the document “ZONE M1 – LEVEL 30 – THIRD FLOOR PLAN,” available under the “Documents” tab of the above linked page.
(Incidentally, although they aren’t credited on the drawing, the cinema parts of the drawing look suspiciously similar to other drawings by UNICK, with the same “CAD library” disabled bay seats used, for instance; albeit it wouldn’t be a big surprise if they were indeed responsible considering that they claim to have been involved in the development of over 1/3rds of new build multiplexes in the UK!)
The largest auditorium on this plan is Auditorium 1, and the screen width as drawn measures about 22m (~72ft.)
Auditorium 1 as shown on these plans is definitely on the large size—about 31.5mx22.9m (max. excluding the VIP boxes/booth) (~103x75ft.) That also puts the last (non-VIP box) seating row within about 1x screen distance away from the screen, and the front row is about 0.38x screen distance away from the screen, so in this respect it appears to be an “immersive” layout á la IMAX.
The sidewalls are splayed towards the screen, so it’s not a rectangular auditorium, either!
No licensing plans appear to be available.
Having a look at Cineworld’s booking pages, the 13:30 performance of “The Incredibles” is in Screen 12, and the seating diagram matches that of Auditorium 1 in the plans, as well as having a VIP box seating option; clearly Auditorium 1 was “renumbered” as Auditorium 12.
LARGE_screen_format: Hmm, I seem to recall that CIC was still around even after the name change—having a quick look through Companies House filings: UCI basically was CIC, AMC Entertainment (UK) Limited was renamed UCI (UK) Limited in 1989 following its acquisition by CIC/UA Multiplex BV. CIC (UK) continued to exist as an operating company but this starts getting into company structure spaghetti.
By the end of 1990 UA were no longer involved and the ultimate shareholders were MCA Inc. and Paramount Communications Inc., hence “UCI – A Universal/Paramount Company,” with UK subsidaries still directly owned by holding companies registered in the Netherlands.
Not sure when the former CIC sites changed their branding to UCI but certainly before the mid-1990s.
“the filmworks” was a UCI brand; going by the Cinema Treasures description and theatreofvarieties' earlier post on this page, the refurbishment was in 2002.
I can’t find any record of “the filmworks company” referred to in the Cinema Treasures description.
Odeon and UCI were acquired by Terra Firma Investments, Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group was formed, and High Wycombe was one of the divested sites acquired by Empire Cinemas in 2005.
One difference I have remembered between the original Wycombe 6 seats and Empire (screen 1), LSQ was that the latter reclined slightly (rocker style) when you leaned back. The Wycombe 6 seats did not, they were fixed. They did have headrests though and may well be identical to those you linked to from Empire (screen 2) LSQ?
Very difficult to find information on old seating products but I did find a catalogue (IIRC from the 2000s) with list prices for American Seating Company products. Far more expensive than I’d expected! That might explain why the seating, whether American Seating Company or not, but assumed to be of the highest quality, were replaced with cheaper models rather than overhauling the existing with replacement parts.
The “rocker” action of the old Empire 1 seats was absolutely fantastic, better than any other seat I’ve ever sat on!
Shame I didn’t take more photos back in those days. The backlit sign for screen 1 (This auditorium is THX certified) for example. I do still have one of the original ‘This Theatre Features DTS Digital Sound’ plaques somewhere from this cinema.
Zappomatic: Thanks for your detailed response. :–)
The “picture frame” design that Empire Cinemas used in the former Screens 4-9 seemed to be a slightly odd throwback to the 1928 iteration of the Empire, particularly since very few patrons would “get” the reference! With the concealed edge lighting it did actually look quite good in person, though.
As you say the Cineworld refurbished auditoria are stripped down in terms of decorative features, but at least they don’t look tacky; I think Cineworld have shown some good judgement and restraint with their alterations to their LSQ cinema.
LARGE_screen_format: Responding to the relevant parts of your post on the “Odeon North Greenwich” page dated 2nd July 2018…
If I’m not mistaken UCI Wycombe 6 had identical seats as those you mention from the good ole days at The Empire, Leicester Square and I agree they were super comfy.
The only auditorium photo I can find of this cinema in its original state is one uploaded to Cinema Treasures. Very difficult to tell!
However, there is a photo available of another mid-80s CIC auditorium, namely the old Empire 3, which provides a better view of its seating; these seats do seem to bare some resemblance in form to the American Seating Company seats that were in the old Empire 1, although they have a headrest section.
Perhaps, then, those installed at High Wycombe were a similar model to those in the old Empire 1.
I was really annoyed when they were replaced with inferior seats some years later but could understand the decision to replace rather than refurbish due to cost implications.
Are these the ones that were installed for “the filmworks” overhaul? I assume the stadia was built then also?
I guess at that point the path of least resistance was to “skip” the old and replace.
If that’s how that auditorium looks today then it really needs a makeover—the seats are sagging and the carpet looks like it’s seen better days! (Maybe wet cleaning would be sufficient.)
Alas, the American Seating Company sold its “Architectural Fixed Seating” business to the Irwin Seating Company. Of the American Seating Company’s auditorium seating product lines, the “Stellar” series is in their catalogue, but one might imagine that there might be implications in terms of spare parts availablity for older seats. Now if only I could find “Empire 1”-type (“1960 Comfort Deluxe mode” according to a post on Cinema Treasures by theatreofvarieties) seats on eBay…
LARGE_screen_format: AFAIK the TCL Chinese Theatre IMAX auditorium doesn’t conform to the basic IMAX geometry requirements in that the auditorium depth exceeds the screen width.
(“Back of an envelope” calculation: 23 rows deep x assume 4ft. per row = 92ft. [i.e. almost ~94ft. screen width!] front-to-back distance required for the seating alone—no space for the central gangway nor between the screen and front row!)
A quick look at a photo of the IMAX Melbourne auditorium reveals that the rows are widely spaced.
“Back of an envelope” calculation: If the auditorium depth = screen width and the first row is 0.35x screen width from the screen, per classic IMAX requirements, this leaves about 68ft. depth for the seating. There are 12 rows, so this works out at slightly less than 5.7ft row spacing. Taking these assumptions further, were the row spacing reduced to 4ft., then this would enable around 200 extra seats.
(Hmm, except for the slightly tacky red backlit Cineworld “stars” on the sidewalls.)
360° photos of the foyer (one taken from upper vestibule, the other from the far end), Screen 1 and Screen 2 can be seen on Squaremeal’s website, under the “Virtual Tour” section towards the bottom of the page (“Room List” at the top right of the photo view area is used to select the desired shot.)
In the photo of Screen 1, the yellow upholstered door with “porthole” is still in place!
“Cineworld London Venues” — photos of the LSQ IMAX, O2 Superscreen, Cineworld Wembley and Wandsworth.)
There are photos of the 4DX auditorium in the “carousel” at the top of the page, and if it is available to book, it’s perhaps amusing to imagine a corporate event being ruined by rogue use of the 4DX environmental effects. ;–)
Photos of the former Cineworld (Empire) Leicester Square Screens 4/5 are available in Eomac’s literature in the PDF linked to from the linked page.
The new stadia do seem to have quite an improved rake.
I can’t see more than 3 sidewall speakers in the “new” Screen 2, whereas the former Screen 4 had 4—although the front one may be washed out.
Zappomatic: How does the new Lino Sonego seating compare to the previous? (AFAIK from Seating Concepts.) Is the picture/sound quality up to standard?
LARGE_screen_format: Looking at the IMAX and Superscreen booking pages for LSQ, as well as one of the “studio”-sized auditorium, Cineworld’s booking system seems have two different layouts for the screen, one with “SCREEN” in a grey rectangle extending the full width, used for the “studio”-sized auditorium, and the other used for the IMAX/Superscreen, which show a similar rectangle, only the left/right sides are angled. This latter rectangle seems to have a maximum width of ~20 seats or so, and hence is the wrong relative width for the Superscreen as well as the IMAX. Clearly it’s a “generic” layout also in the sense that the seating distance from the screen isn’t represented to any kind of relative scale, either.
Licensing plans are definitely a fantastic resource, but I don’t think I’d thought to search for them either until I read a post on Cinema Treasures by Zappomatic. With inconsistent addresses, slow page load times, and so on— generally very clunky systems used—it’s not always easy to find what you’re looking for, though!
LARGE_screen_format: Licensing plans show everything (within reason) “to scale”—try the “MEZZANINE LEVEL” PDF linked to from the “DOCUMENTS” tab on the linked page.
Based on this, 8 side seats (16 total) of row M (2nd to last row) are beyond the screen edges.
LARGE_screen_format: No idea what the terms of agreement are regarding disclosure but I wouldn’t imagine marketing would be thinking of creating a “buzz” until close to the reopening date.
(I suppose the cost-benefit would be positive, since the marginal cost is essentially zero, if they were thinking of getting out information to more technically-minded enthusiasts. However, I doubt that the success of the project would be riding on this; the average cinema-goer isn’t going to read some article about it hidden away in the “back pages” of the generic “press” and respond to it by thinking “OMG, OLS reopening with Dolby Cinema in many months' time, must talk about it incessantly and remind all my Facebook ‘friends’ every week!”)
I have uploaded a photo, taken last weekend, of the rear “Service Yard” area from Charing Cross Road. A Portakabin that I don’t recall being there previously can be seen positioned by the entrance. The cinema building itself is at the end of the yard, with external staircases, and going by the licensing plans, behind what appear to be broken windows (!) at the upper level are disused dressing rooms.
The upper level auditoria of “Odeon Studios” are just behind these rooms.
I took a number of photos of the Leicester Square frontage, but the changes are not really significant from my last trip. There is a waste chute down from circle foyer level which presumably heads down towards a skip behind the LSQ hoarding, and the hoarding has been extended to cover the entire width of the LSQ frontage.
LARGE_screen_format: If you’re in that area again, you might want to try the Superscreen at the O2, as it has a very well spec’d sound system, with almost the same screen speaker setup as the Cineworld (Empire) Leicester Square Superscreen, and Atmos installed since the linked press release was published.
Parking is insanely expensive at the O2, but Cineworld patrons are allowed 4 hours' free parking.
I don’t think I ever went to the smaller auditoria when it was “the filmworks,” although even though I visited on multiple occasions, The only movie I can even recall seeing there was “Ocean’s 11”!
£70 for tickets including concessions? Absurd… looking at the ticket prices for the Greenwich IMAX, it is almost at West End levels?!
Would be interested to see pictures or find out more about these “luxury” “The Gallery” seats. My favourite cinema seats of all time are still the red American Seating Company “rocker”-type seating that were installed in the old Empire 1. (Albeit comparing them to old catalogue photos of their product line, as well as photos of the “new” Empire taken back in 1962, it does seem that they may have “gained” padding when overhauled—either that and/or there were seat covers on top of seat covers!)
BTW, if you are not aware already, Odeon are offering a 40% off discount code valid until the 11th July (works for tickets for 2D/3D performances including premiere seats and PLF screens but not certain titles including “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.”)
Addendum: Taken August 2018.
LARGE_screen_format:
You’re welcome! :–) I do my best, it’s always good to get positive feedback. ;–)
They sound like an incredibly stupid idea to me, actually. ;–)
The rear wall should be heavily acoustically damped; having large areas of glass to reflect sound (and, even if to a rather modest extent relatively, image) back is not good for those in the auditorium.
Interesting. I can’t imagine this works too well, since the speakers won’t be in the correct location spatially?
It also obliterates one of the major benefits a large auditorium has over a living room (well, unless your living room has dimensions exceeding, say, 50ft.+ ;–)—namely, freedom from low frequencies being dominated by room modes (resonances.)
But then again, I can’t imagine that anyone booking seats in the boxes is too interested in optimum seating locations… ;–)
Talking of which, IME, the position of the VIP seats in the Vue Xtreme auditoria I’ve visited are altogether too far back.
I’ve posted estimates of relative seating positions to the screen width for Vue O2 Finchley Road, and certainly that auditorium hardly qualifies as “large format,” if the criteria is based on the basic “classic” IMAX geometry standards. I guess “caveat emptor” with screens marketed as “PLF”!
Incidentally, apparently these “old” screen width to seating position ratio standards were actually based on tests using 35mm film in the 1950s (!), being set so that the audience would be far enough away from the screen such that the artifacts of film and projection thereof—i.e. grain, weave, etc.—would not be overly perceptible! Whereas, the “classic” IMAX standards are, I think, based more around creating an immersive system given human physiology/perception, i.e. in a sense the system is built more from the perspective of achieving a quality immersive experience, rather than around the limitations of an existent—and in the theatrical world now more or less obsolete—format.
Thanks. :–) I think they’re QSC, actually; I was confused as my initial thought was that they might be JBL, but the relevant model was not available when the cinema was built—and I can’t imagine the sound system was upgraded, without otherwise an overall refurbishment of the auditorium occurring, and even then I’d be surprised if they bothered to replace the rears (unless, perhaps, if upgrading to Atmos?)
Seems to me the area is overscreened, certainly on the basis of multiplexes per capita in the UK and the population of High Wycombe per se?
I can imagine that in the earlier days of multiplexes that the CIC/UCI High Wycombe would draw in trade from a wide catchment as, if I’m not mistaken, there was very little in the way of local competition.
I guess the idea behind Eden was to create a regional retail/leisure facility, but there’s competition on that front, such as the “new” The Lexicon Bracknell, which of course is also home to a Cineworld.
On the M40/A40 corridor, the Odeon Uxbridge IMAX and the fairly recently opened Cineworld South Ruislip would obviate the need (or possible even draw in business from High Wycombe and environs in the case of the IMAX due to the brand?) to head out to High Wycombe for the purpose of a cinema trip.
Regarding parking costs, planning policy effectively “forced” new leisure development to predominantly be in city/town centres. You can probably guess my view on those policies from the last sentence, but I’ll avoid further comment here as this isn’t a site for “political” debates—but suffice to say, with cinema ticket prices as they are, in most locations (i.e. not Central London and environs—and if one were crazy enough to park off Leicester Square, it would cost just as much as a premium cinema ticket at West End prices!) paying for additional parking charges doesn’t seem reasonable.
Shame that you aren’t able to get the off-peak discounts that were previously available. :–(
I’d expect Cineworld, across their entire UK estate, to have done their homework though? (I think their priority is on their “Unlimited” card…)
ritzman: That would be nice, but given the “large format” — possibly Dolby Cinema — screen slated for the refurbished OLS, I wouldn’t get my hopes up—at least not in the original location!
It will be interesting to see just how much plasterwork is retained or reinstated. The auditorium as it was would need a lot of acoustic treatment were it to be brought closer to current “new build” standards.
Of course, the forms could be recreated to a lesser or greater degree of exactitude using modern materials, as was the panelling around the “golden ladies” in the late 90s refurb using, AFAIK, stretched fabric panels, where wooden panelling was originally used.
Incidentally, Eomac—the company that seemingly supplies stretched fabric profiles and textiles to just about every new or refurbished cinema on the planet, also offer acoustic wood products.
Acoustic plaster solutions also exist, e.g. Quietspray (no idea if that would be suitable or not to recreate the 1930s forms, but as an example of a plaster system that has good acoustic absorption performance.)
I suppose all depends in part on just how much money Odeon are willing to throw at the project, and ability to diverge from the path of least resistance, for non-obligatory heritage reasons.
Update: The LSQ scaffolding has been covered over with fire retardant sheets; I did take some photos, but thinking about it, it really isn’t very interesting! However, it may suggest that work is now progressing to the foyer/facade phase.
No changes to views from Charing Cross Road.
Incidentally, if I’m not mistaken, the location where the top of this shot is cropped (at the screen end of the auditorium) is somewhere around where the ceiling of the old Empire 1 was.
Correction to previous post: 151 RGB LED bars, not 171.
I attended a screening of “Mission Impossible—Fallout” in the IMAX auditorium today, having booked my ticket at the “last minute” (by which I mean, just enough time to get to the cinema some minutes before the auditorium doors were opened!)
This was foolish in that I did not consider whether the film was worth seeing—albeit, its current Rotten Tomatoes score is 97%(!)—so “research” may not have been of any assistance!
It turns out that the film IS worth seeing—but, IMO, only for the visuals in the final act. Set in Kashmir, numerous stunning shots of mountainous terrain in “full height” IMAX Digital (1.9:1) are featured, presumably digitally acquired (CGI aside) using Panavision Millennium DXLs (8K source format) per IMDb Technical Specifications.
Full use of the 12 channel IMAX sound system was apparent in these scenes, e.g. strongly directional helicopter sounds panned overhead.
(Picture quality-wise, the rest of the film is lacking in detail with poor depth of field and I assume was mostly acquired on 35mm film per IMDb Technical Specifications, although no grain was apparent, suggesting heavy noise reduction.)
IMAX auditorium update:
Cineworld (Empire) Leicester Square update:
The building site notice still appears on the fire exit door to Leicester Street.
To add to ongoing observations of extreme minutiae, the left wall of the lower vestibule (i.e. underneath the section leading to the 4DX) now has black strips added. (Photo uploaded.) Interestingly (?), if it’s the same product visible in fit-out photos of Cineworld Broughton—see Image 1 and Image 2—these black strips might not actually be PMMA (aka Perspex/Plexiglass,) but Alupanel.
Empire Cinemas' registered office is, as of November 2017, 63-65 Haymarket. The “10 – Empire Studios” sign remains by the entrance to the upper level offices on the Leicester Place frontage, although no signs of activity were externally visible, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to assume that they’ve vacated.
[Added text to overcome “Your comment appears to be spam!” notification which appeared on reposting with minor edits. And some more text for another repost. :–(]
Plans are available in a licensing application — Camden Council Public Licensing Register Search — by searching using reference:
APP\PREMISES-VARY\000685
Plans were supplied by UNICK Architects.
Estimating the Auditorium 8 (aka “Vue Xtreme,”) based on the screen size given in Vue’s press release (linked to above) and the screen as drawn on the plans, the auditorium measures approximately 19m wide by 26.5m deep (or ~62ft. x ~87ft.)
The front row is ~0.35 screen width from the screen, whilst to keep within the classic IMAX criteria of no more than the screen width from the screen, it is necessary to sit no further back than the second row of the steeply raked section (the front 5 rows are on a flatter rake.)
The second row of the “VIP seats” is ~1.2x screen width away from the screen, and the rearmost row of all the seats ~1.65x.
Not to say that there’s anything “wrong” (or “right”) about the auditorium—it might be a black box, but I think it’s pretty good in terms of build (e.g. acoustic isolation and absorption)—but just to compare it to classic IMAX criteria for horizontal viewing angles/“immersiveness.”
Passed by Cineworld (Empire) LSQ yesterday; alas “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” was playing in the IMAX/Superscreen. :–(
(ABBA, like them or not, have gifted the world with a large repertoire of popular songs written and arranged to a very high standard, many of which are classics, and I have no interest in watching/hearing them being mutilated in a corny sequel!)
Cineworld are now branding LSQ as “London’s premiere destination and home to the stars,” on the screen nearest to the entrance (mounted on the right side wall of the lower vestibule), with clips of various premiere/“red carpet” events being shown. (Photo uploaded.)
The only external sign of ongoing building work remains the “Construction Site” notice on the exterior of the Leicester Street fire exit doors.
Empire Cinemas' registered address has been changed to 63-65 Haymarket, aka Empire Haymarket. The “Empire Studios” sign remains by the the entrance door facing Leicester Place.
bigjoe59: Regarding the Cinerama you refer to, that format/system existed way before my time—but perhaps you mean the location that was originally, and is today, named the “Prince Edward Theatre”? It’s about 100 metres (on foot) from Shaftesbury Avenue.
London Casino – incinerama.com.
Photos of the auditorium in Cinerama guise and a (somewhat crudely drawn!) plan (with the three projector locations marked) can be seen, as well as a plan for the change to a single projector setup/replacement screen in 1974. Lists of three strip and single strip programming are also included.
Whatever the merits of Cinerama by today’s standards, the 1954 alterations look disastrous—aesthetically and yielding a technically substandard auditorium (in terms of acoustics, seating locations relative to the screen, etc.) Fascinating history, though…!
External scaffolding has now been erected on the Leicester Square facade. As far as I could tell, the foyer areas are in the same stripped state as previous posts, with what I assume to be the underside of the circle stadia still visible.
Cineworld cinema to be rebuilt over 30in error.
Oops! (This story is from 2013, so it’s not about to be rebuilt now.)
Broughton Cineworld opens its doors for a brief peek inside.
Video and photo gallery showing the IMAX auditorium virtually completed, another auditorium before the screen has been installed (with a test card projected on the acoustic absorption and QSC stage speakers on the floor in front!), booths including IMAX digital and Barco projectors, and foyer/lobby areas under fit-out.
The screen in the IMAX appears to be on the relatively modest side (at least by the ~90ft. wide screens I’m used to!), and indeed according to a case study by the company that installed the alarm/access control/CCTV systems (!) it measures 17mx9m (~56x29.5ft.) It does, however, feature very nice looking seating.
LARGE_screen_format:
Planning Application.
This planning application would appear to be relevant as the previous application was outline only and the summary descriptions of later variation applications do not mention any changes to Block M1 (in which the cinema is located.)
Plans for the cinema auditoria can be seen in the document “ZONE M1 – LEVEL 30 – THIRD FLOOR PLAN,” available under the “Documents” tab of the above linked page.
(Incidentally, although they aren’t credited on the drawing, the cinema parts of the drawing look suspiciously similar to other drawings by UNICK, with the same “CAD library” disabled bay seats used, for instance; albeit it wouldn’t be a big surprise if they were indeed responsible considering that they claim to have been involved in the development of over 1/3rds of new build multiplexes in the UK!)
The largest auditorium on this plan is Auditorium 1, and the screen width as drawn measures about 22m (~72ft.)
Auditorium 1 as shown on these plans is definitely on the large size—about 31.5mx22.9m (max. excluding the VIP boxes/booth) (~103x75ft.) That also puts the last (non-VIP box) seating row within about 1x screen distance away from the screen, and the front row is about 0.38x screen distance away from the screen, so in this respect it appears to be an “immersive” layout á la IMAX.
The sidewalls are splayed towards the screen, so it’s not a rectangular auditorium, either!
No licensing plans appear to be available.
Having a look at Cineworld’s booking pages, the 13:30 performance of “The Incredibles” is in Screen 12, and the seating diagram matches that of Auditorium 1 in the plans, as well as having a VIP box seating option; clearly Auditorium 1 was “renumbered” as Auditorium 12.
2015 Tripadvisor user photo.
Hmm, disappointing, I think, given that the space has so much potential? Time for a refurbishment plus Atmos, methinks…
Do you know what make the rear array speakers are? How is the picture/sound quality?
Ziris Canvas – Vue Westfield London.
Promotional video (uploaded to YouTube in 2010) on the (IMHO hideous) multi-screen display feature and other video displays in the foyer.
LARGE_screen_format: Hmm, I seem to recall that CIC was still around even after the name change—having a quick look through Companies House filings: UCI basically was CIC, AMC Entertainment (UK) Limited was renamed UCI (UK) Limited in 1989 following its acquisition by CIC/UA Multiplex BV. CIC (UK) continued to exist as an operating company but this starts getting into company structure spaghetti.
By the end of 1990 UA were no longer involved and the ultimate shareholders were MCA Inc. and Paramount Communications Inc., hence “UCI – A Universal/Paramount Company,” with UK subsidaries still directly owned by holding companies registered in the Netherlands.
Not sure when the former CIC sites changed their branding to UCI but certainly before the mid-1990s.
“the filmworks” was a UCI brand; going by the Cinema Treasures description and theatreofvarieties' earlier post on this page, the refurbishment was in 2002.
I can’t find any record of “the filmworks company” referred to in the Cinema Treasures description.
Odeon and UCI were acquired by Terra Firma Investments, Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group was formed, and High Wycombe was one of the divested sites acquired by Empire Cinemas in 2005.
Very difficult to find information on old seating products but I did find a catalogue (IIRC from the 2000s) with list prices for American Seating Company products. Far more expensive than I’d expected! That might explain why the seating, whether American Seating Company or not, but assumed to be of the highest quality, were replaced with cheaper models rather than overhauling the existing with replacement parts.
The “rocker” action of the old Empire 1 seats was absolutely fantastic, better than any other seat I’ve ever sat on!
Backlit THX sign? Must have been a custom one?
A few links relating to the original redevelopment of the site to form “The Printworks” and the concept of “the filmworks” brand:
Design Week – “The Film Works for UCI Cinemas” – August 2000.
Design Week – “RTKL Stamps Mark on Printworks” – November 2000.
RTKL Project Sheet.
Zappomatic: Thanks for your detailed response. :–)
The “picture frame” design that Empire Cinemas used in the former Screens 4-9 seemed to be a slightly odd throwback to the 1928 iteration of the Empire, particularly since very few patrons would “get” the reference! With the concealed edge lighting it did actually look quite good in person, though.
As you say the Cineworld refurbished auditoria are stripped down in terms of decorative features, but at least they don’t look tacky; I think Cineworld have shown some good judgement and restraint with their alterations to their LSQ cinema.
LARGE_screen_format: Responding to the relevant parts of your post on the “Odeon North Greenwich” page dated 2nd July 2018…
The only auditorium photo I can find of this cinema in its original state is one uploaded to Cinema Treasures. Very difficult to tell!
However, there is a photo available of another mid-80s CIC auditorium, namely the old Empire 3, which provides a better view of its seating; these seats do seem to bare some resemblance in form to the American Seating Company seats that were in the old Empire 1, although they have a headrest section.
Perhaps, then, those installed at High Wycombe were a similar model to those in the old Empire 1.
Photo of an auditorium at Empire High Wycombe dated 2015.
Are these the ones that were installed for “the filmworks” overhaul? I assume the stadia was built then also?
I guess at that point the path of least resistance was to “skip” the old and replace.
If that’s how that auditorium looks today then it really needs a makeover—the seats are sagging and the carpet looks like it’s seen better days! (Maybe wet cleaning would be sufficient.)
Alas, the American Seating Company sold its “Architectural Fixed Seating” business to the Irwin Seating Company. Of the American Seating Company’s auditorium seating product lines, the “Stellar” series is in their catalogue, but one might imagine that there might be implications in terms of spare parts availablity for older seats. Now if only I could find “Empire 1”-type (“1960 Comfort Deluxe mode” according to a post on Cinema Treasures by theatreofvarieties) seats on eBay…
The replacement seating for the IMAX conversion was a “custom” design supplied by Seating Concepts:
How We Helped the Historic Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles with Its Recent Overhaul—Seating Concepts.
LARGE_screen_format: AFAIK the TCL Chinese Theatre IMAX auditorium doesn’t conform to the basic IMAX geometry requirements in that the auditorium depth exceeds the screen width.
(“Back of an envelope” calculation: 23 rows deep x assume 4ft. per row = 92ft. [i.e. almost ~94ft. screen width!] front-to-back distance required for the seating alone—no space for the central gangway nor between the screen and front row!)
A quick look at a photo of the IMAX Melbourne auditorium reveals that the rows are widely spaced.
“Back of an envelope” calculation: If the auditorium depth = screen width and the first row is 0.35x screen width from the screen, per classic IMAX requirements, this leaves about 68ft. depth for the seating. There are 12 rows, so this works out at slightly less than 5.7ft row spacing. Taking these assumptions further, were the row spacing reduced to 4ft., then this would enable around 200 extra seats.
Zappomatic: Thanks for the photos, looks good!
(Hmm, except for the slightly tacky red backlit Cineworld “stars” on the sidewalls.)
360° photos of the foyer (one taken from upper vestibule, the other from the far end), Screen 1 and Screen 2 can be seen on Squaremeal’s website, under the “Virtual Tour” section towards the bottom of the page (“Room List” at the top right of the photo view area is used to select the desired shot.)
In the photo of Screen 1, the yellow upholstered door with “porthole” is still in place!
“Cineworld London Venues” — photos of the LSQ IMAX, O2 Superscreen, Cineworld Wembley and Wandsworth.)
There are photos of the 4DX auditorium in the “carousel” at the top of the page, and if it is available to book, it’s perhaps amusing to imagine a corporate event being ruined by rogue use of the 4DX environmental effects. ;–)
Photos of the former Cineworld (Empire) Leicester Square Screens 4/5 are available in Eomac’s literature in the PDF linked to from the linked page.
The new stadia do seem to have quite an improved rake. I can’t see more than 3 sidewall speakers in the “new” Screen 2, whereas the former Screen 4 had 4—although the front one may be washed out.
Zappomatic: How does the new Lino Sonego seating compare to the previous? (AFAIK from Seating Concepts.) Is the picture/sound quality up to standard?
LARGE_screen_format: Looking at the IMAX and Superscreen booking pages for LSQ, as well as one of the “studio”-sized auditorium, Cineworld’s booking system seems have two different layouts for the screen, one with “SCREEN” in a grey rectangle extending the full width, used for the “studio”-sized auditorium, and the other used for the IMAX/Superscreen, which show a similar rectangle, only the left/right sides are angled. This latter rectangle seems to have a maximum width of ~20 seats or so, and hence is the wrong relative width for the Superscreen as well as the IMAX. Clearly it’s a “generic” layout also in the sense that the seating distance from the screen isn’t represented to any kind of relative scale, either.
Licensing plans are definitely a fantastic resource, but I don’t think I’d thought to search for them either until I read a post on Cinema Treasures by Zappomatic. With inconsistent addresses, slow page load times, and so on— generally very clunky systems used—it’s not always easy to find what you’re looking for, though!
LARGE_screen_format: Licensing plans show everything (within reason) “to scale”—try the “MEZZANINE LEVEL” PDF linked to from the “DOCUMENTS” tab on the linked page.
Based on this, 8 side seats (16 total) of row M (2nd to last row) are beyond the screen edges.
LARGE_screen_format: No idea what the terms of agreement are regarding disclosure but I wouldn’t imagine marketing would be thinking of creating a “buzz” until close to the reopening date.
(I suppose the cost-benefit would be positive, since the marginal cost is essentially zero, if they were thinking of getting out information to more technically-minded enthusiasts. However, I doubt that the success of the project would be riding on this; the average cinema-goer isn’t going to read some article about it hidden away in the “back pages” of the generic “press” and respond to it by thinking “OMG, OLS reopening with Dolby Cinema in many months' time, must talk about it incessantly and remind all my Facebook ‘friends’ every week!”)
I have uploaded a photo, taken last weekend, of the rear “Service Yard” area from Charing Cross Road. A Portakabin that I don’t recall being there previously can be seen positioned by the entrance. The cinema building itself is at the end of the yard, with external staircases, and going by the licensing plans, behind what appear to be broken windows (!) at the upper level are disused dressing rooms.
The upper level auditoria of “Odeon Studios” are just behind these rooms.
I took a number of photos of the Leicester Square frontage, but the changes are not really significant from my last trip. There is a waste chute down from circle foyer level which presumably heads down towards a skip behind the LSQ hoarding, and the hoarding has been extended to cover the entire width of the LSQ frontage.
LARGE_screen_format: If you’re in that area again, you might want to try the Superscreen at the O2, as it has a very well spec’d sound system, with almost the same screen speaker setup as the Cineworld (Empire) Leicester Square Superscreen, and Atmos installed since the linked press release was published.
Parking is insanely expensive at the O2, but Cineworld patrons are allowed 4 hours' free parking.
I don’t think I ever went to the smaller auditoria when it was “the filmworks,” although even though I visited on multiple occasions, The only movie I can even recall seeing there was “Ocean’s 11”!
£70 for tickets including concessions? Absurd… looking at the ticket prices for the Greenwich IMAX, it is almost at West End levels?!
Would be interested to see pictures or find out more about these “luxury” “The Gallery” seats. My favourite cinema seats of all time are still the red American Seating Company “rocker”-type seating that were installed in the old Empire 1. (Albeit comparing them to old catalogue photos of their product line, as well as photos of the “new” Empire taken back in 1962, it does seem that they may have “gained” padding when overhauled—either that and/or there were seat covers on top of seat covers!)
BTW, if you are not aware already, Odeon are offering a 40% off discount code valid until the 11th July (works for tickets for 2D/3D performances including premiere seats and PLF screens but not certain titles including “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.”)