3 Myths

As the first week of the campaign to save the cinema comes to an end, we need to bust some myths before they take on a life of their own. 

1. Oriel are planning to knock the building down

This isn’t true. It’s understandable that people would leap to this conclusion, but please help us correct this myth whenever you see or hear it popping up. The building is Grade II listed and has Asset of Community Value status, and as such is protected from demolition or significant changes to its exterior. 

At one point Oriel suggested that they would consider letting us take the facade of the building to a new location but have since said that they do not wish to demolish the building. 

2. If Oriel don’t extend our lease, the cinema can just set itself up somewhere else

We’re hearing hints that Oriel might seek to separate the building from the business. 

The cinema is community-owned, and its 1,200 shareholders bought into a business which operates in its original setting. 

The building was put up as a cinema 115 years ago (fun fact: it was Oxford’s very first purpose-built cinema!) Aside from a period that cinema historian Ian Meyrick described in his book “The Ultimate Survivor” as ‘The Big Sleep’ when the cinema was used as a furniture warehouse, the cinema’s primary purpose has always been as a public cinema.  

We’ve always been clear with Oriel that we are very willing to collaborate and wish to work together on a solution that is beneficial to both the cinema and the college. As such we’re very open to the cinema being used for other purposes, such as lectures and talks, as long as it remains a public cinema. In fact, those things are already part of our diverse programming. 

3. The cinema management are new 

In Oriel’s statement on the day of the campaign launch, they talk about being ‘in dialogue with new managers’. They’re referring to the fact that the cinema came into community-ownership in 2022.

When long-time owner Becky Hallsmith passed away, it was her wish that the cinema remained a community-focussed, independent cinema. So UPP staff, regulars, and a group of dedicated volunteers established a Community Benefit Society, The Ultimate Picture Palace Community Cinema, to carry on the UPP’s legacy. In 2022, their share offer raised £366,000 in community shares from over 1,200 local people and since then the business has gone from strength to strength, becoming one of the most successful single screen cinemas in the country. 

At that point, the lease  was assigned to the UPPCC following the freehold having been newly acquired by Oriel College in 2021. 

Many of our staff have been with the cinema for years. 

Questions? Ideas? Get in touch. Email us at campaign@uppcinema.com