Tyneside Cinema To Make Its Grand Return To Pilgrim Street
Film enthusiasts get excited! The beloved (and dearly missed) Tyneside Cinema is reopening this month on Pilgrim Street. After relocating for the last 18 months to the Old Town Hall in Gateshead, the Newcastle site has been completely renovated with new and exciting additions to the theatre, programme and much more.
Tyneside will now feature three comfortably furnished screening rooms, including the fully restored Classic auditorium, the new 165-seater Electra and the new 100-seater The Roxy. The three screens will allow Tyneside to show 30% more new independent films than it has in the past, meaning quicker releases of new films and longer runs. The new Tyneside also features a return of the popular Tyneside Coffee Rooms and the Intermezzo Café bar along with the new Tyneside Bar, which will be an additional place to buy food and drink. Other updates include a lift, improved facilities for people with disabilities and modern toilet facilities.
Although Tyneside has undergone many modern updates, a lot has also been done to preserve the cinema’s history. The original 1937 mosaics, ceiling decorations and stained glass windows have been restored throughout the building and new displays have been created which explain the rich history and tradition of the cinema and its initial role as a newsreel theatre. For those interested in this history, Tyneside will host guided tours each Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday which will feature viewings of authentic newsreels shown at the theatre from the late 1930s into the 1960s.
Furthermore, Tyneside will continue in its dedication to film education in the North East. New purpose-built spaces have been added to the cinema for the popular training courses and for the production and post-production of film. An exciting addition to this is a digital film production lab designed by Tyneside Patron and commended director of “Leaving Las Vegas”, Mike Figgis.However, above all else Tyneside will be a place to appreciate film in all its forms and enjoy an evening at the movies.
According to Tyneside’s Marketing and Communications Manager Jonny Tull, “The film side of the cinema is paramount, but the style and comfort aspect makes it more of an occasion. It becomes a night out again and a social experience.” To add to this style aspect, the balcony of the Classic auditorium has been redesigned as a space with a bar, leather chairs and tables with wine buckets. Ticket prices for this area will be slightly more, but worth the added services and the stylish cinema experience. The usual student discounts will remain available for the rest of the cinema and other discount schemes are in the works.
Tyneside will reopen with a free open house on Sunday, the 18th of May from 12:00-5:00pm featuring short films, workshops, live music and a showcase of the renovated building. The first screening programme will begin fulltime on May 22nd and feature an eclectic mix of world cinema.
Information about this first programme, online sales and other updates will be available on Tuesday, the 6th of May on the new Tyneside website, www.tynesidecinema.co.uk.
Carrie Egerton
