Major movie theater chain confirms it will be closing five branches within weeks… so will your local venue be affected?
- Odeon cinemas announced plans to close five branches in the coming weeks
One of Britain’s best-loved cinema chains has announced plans to close five branches in the coming weeks.
Odeon Cinemas said it made the decision ‘after a thorough consideration of all available options
The company says five branches will close on June 5, including Magdalen Street, Oxford; Rigby Road, Blackpool; Weston supermare; Ayr and Banbury.
An Odeon spokesperson said: ‘We have made the very difficult decision to close a small number of our cinemas.
“We know this will be disappointing news for our guests and we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
“We want to thank them for choosing Odeon to enjoy the magic of cinema.
Odeon cinemas says it has made a ‘difficult decision’ to close five branches in the coming weeks
‘Looking after our people is our number one priority and we are looking to find jobs for as many team members as possible in one of our 116 other cinemas across the UK and Ireland.’
Already one A petition has been launched to save the Ayr branchwith more than 700 signatures.
The petition’s organizer, Lynda Hind, said the building, which opened in 1938, is the last purpose-built Art Deco cinema in Scotland, “with only six other examples in Britain”.
She stated: ‘Ayr will be left with yet another vacant high street building due to the closure of the Odeon cinema on June 5, as the venue is no longer viable.
“The loss of this cinema will not only be another blow to our dying high street, but also to the architecture and history of film… With less than a month to close, Ayr must do everything it can to make one of preserve its last remaining shopping streets. attractions.’
The 1,000 seat Odeon Building in Magdalen Street, Oxford is a Grade II listed building built by renowned theater builders Frank Matcham & Company.
The first screening was the silent film The Four Horsemen and the Apocalypse on January 1, 1924. reports the BBC.
Screenwriter Frank Connelly worked at the site in the 1990s and attributes his career to a chance encounter with an editor of Orbit magazine in the building’s foyer.
He said, ‘That movie theater – it was like magic. It was like stepping into another world, the music playing for the movie, the beautiful upstanding curtains. Everything felt like an event.’