Picturehouse are to surrender lease on this property at Easter 2024. The owner, the local council, will operate for a period but the longer term is unclear. Presumably they will seek a new private operator. The owners of Picturehouse also operate the Cineworld in Ashford.
BBC reports the cinema is due to close as not considered viable (presumably the competition from Cineworld not helpful). It would be great if Everyman or similar could do a York on the site!
Pleased to say that the balcony is now reopened launched with a showing of ‘Roman Holiday’ 10th Feb 2023. This was a full house showing with live music in the bar area beforehand. The roof has also been renewed so the leaks are fixed.
I was always intrigued as to the old name of this cinema The Penultimate Picture Palace. Apparently this arose from a discussion between the previous owner and his bank manager we who said words to the effect that this was the second stupidest business proposition he had heard.
This was my local cinema as a child and was great!
Apart from the normal film shows, there was a Saturday morning cinema club for kids. Cartoons, old serial and a short feature. Children were invited onto the stage to dance - lots of forceful instructions to keep away from the silver screen!
Towards the end the stalls were converted for bingo before films ceased completely.
Every Remembrance Sunday the cinema opened for a special Remembrance event - a semi formal religious service which followed on from a parade of various organisations (Boys Brigade, Guides etc) at the local war memorial. At one of the last of the services before this ended I took part and had to stand at the ‘lecturn’ to read something (I was about 15 at the time). The odd thing was that the ‘lecturn’ was actually a bingo calling machine complete with numbered balls and covered with a cloth to give a bit more dignity to the affair! (The cinema was chosen as the venue as it was the biggest auditorium in the area - in fact the biggest in the Borough of Solihull which was technically outside the City of Birmingham.
It has now been announced that Odeon will take over this site in 2025.
It has been announced that this site will be taken over by Vue when Cineworld leaves.
Picturehouse are to surrender lease on this property at Easter 2024. The owner, the local council, will operate for a period but the longer term is unclear. Presumably they will seek a new private operator. The owners of Picturehouse also operate the Cineworld in Ashford.
This building is now used as an Aldi store.
Recently announced that this cinema set to close.
BBC reports the cinema is due to close as not considered viable (presumably the competition from Cineworld not helpful). It would be great if Everyman or similar could do a York on the site!
Pleased to say that the balcony is now reopened launched with a showing of ‘Roman Holiday’ 10th Feb 2023. This was a full house showing with live music in the bar area beforehand. The roof has also been renewed so the leaks are fixed.
This cinema is now opened and showing films.
I was always intrigued as to the old name of this cinema The Penultimate Picture Palace. Apparently this arose from a discussion between the previous owner and his bank manager we who said words to the effect that this was the second stupidest business proposition he had heard.
This was my local cinema as a child and was great!
Apart from the normal film shows, there was a Saturday morning cinema club for kids. Cartoons, old serial and a short feature. Children were invited onto the stage to dance - lots of forceful instructions to keep away from the silver screen!
Towards the end the stalls were converted for bingo before films ceased completely.
Every Remembrance Sunday the cinema opened for a special Remembrance event - a semi formal religious service which followed on from a parade of various organisations (Boys Brigade, Guides etc) at the local war memorial. At one of the last of the services before this ended I took part and had to stand at the ‘lecturn’ to read something (I was about 15 at the time). The odd thing was that the ‘lecturn’ was actually a bingo calling machine complete with numbered balls and covered with a cloth to give a bit more dignity to the affair! (The cinema was chosen as the venue as it was the biggest auditorium in the area - in fact the biggest in the Borough of Solihull which was technically outside the City of Birmingham.