Six months of campaigning, what's next?
It’s 6 months since we launched the campaign to Save the UPP. More than 24,000 people have signed the petition asking our landlord Oriel College to commit to our long term future in the building on Jeune Street.
You’ve been plastering the city with campaign posters, turning up to talks and events and, online, in person and in handwritten notes, telling us how much the cinema means to you.
Thank you. It’s wonderful to have you alongside us.
As we told you last month, we’ve written to all the Fellows in Oriel’s Governing Body to update them and ask for a meeting. If you have any contacts at the College, please do write to them. There’s a bit of urgency because the next meeting of the Governing Body is in early October, coinciding with the start of term and all the staff being back in College.
You can find a template letter here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1izLwZ-b4ySUZLfDhjWRJFv_d387wir7x84LqbxJ791g/edit?usp=sharing Feel free to make it your own, but we ask you to follow our lead in being respectful and constructive.
To help us keep track, if you do write to anyone, please drop us a quick email to let us know: campaign@uppcinema.com Thanks so much to those of you who’ve already done that.
Local media have continued to promote our cause, with the latest coverage here, about Comedian Stewart Lee’s support for the campaign and his upcoming gigs at the UPP: Comedy legend in fight to save historic UK cinema | Oxford Mail
We had about 50 entries for the My UPP competition - it was wonderful to hear all the ideas for ways to demonstrate the flexibility of our space. We chose 3 - a fascinating insight into the mental health benefits of cinema, a unique female DJ collaborative and an eclectic ‘cinematic cabaret’. Check out the website for tickets: Home - The Ultimate Picture Palace