Phoenix Picturehouse

Last updated

Phoenix Picturehouse
Phoenix Picturehouse.jpg
Façade of the Phoenix Picturehouse
Phoenix Picturehouse
Former namesNorth Oxford Cinema (1913–20)
The Scala (1920–25, 1925–70)
New Scala (1925)
Studios One and Two (1970–76)
Studio One and Studio X (1976–77)
Address57 Walton Street, Oxford
OX2 6AE
Location Jericho, Oxford
Coordinates 51°45′37″N1°16′00″W / 51.760322°N 1.266636°W / 51.760322; -1.266636 Coordinates: 51°45′37″N1°16′00″W / 51.760322°N 1.266636°W / 51.760322; -1.266636
Public transitNo buses serve Walton Street. Oxford Bus 6 and Stagecoach buses S2, S3 serve Woodstock Road, 1⁄3 mile (540 m) away
Owner Cineworld
Operator Picturehouse Cinemas
Typecinema
Genre(s)mainstream films,
independent films
Construction
Built1913
Opened15 March 1913;109 years ago (1913-03-15)
Renovated2017
ArchitectGilbert T Gardner,
new façade 1939 by Frederick Chancellor
Website
www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema/Phoenix_Picturehouse/

The Phoenix Picturehouse is a cinema in Oxford, England. [1] It is at 57 Walton Street in the Jericho district of Oxford.

Contents

The Phoenix used to be an independent cinema, [2] and from 1989 the Picturehouse Cinemas chain developed from it. Since 2012 the multi-national Cineworld group has owned Picturehouse Cinemas.

History

The building was designed by local architect Gilbert T Gardner for proprietors Richard Henry John Bartlett, W Beeson and Charles Green. It opened on 15 March 1913 as the North Oxford Kinema. [3] By then Oxford had several cinemas, including the Electric Theatre in Castle Street and the Oxford Picture Palace in Jeune Street.

The cinema changed hands several times in its early years. Proprietors included Hubert Thomas Lambert (1917–20), CW Poole's Entertainments (1920–23), Walshaw Enterprises (1923–25), Ben Jay (1925–27), J Bailiff (1927–28), and Edward Alfred Roberts (1928–30). [3]

In 1920 Poole's, a company most famous for Poole's Myriorama, refurbished the cinema and renamed it The Scala. In 1925 Ben Jay briefly renamed it the New Scala. [2]

In 1930 the lease was acquired by John Edward Poyntz (Born in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, Wales in Oct 1886), who had sound equipment installed. In 1939 the original façade was replaced with one designed by Frederick GM Chancellor of Frank Matcham & Co. [4]

Poyntz regularly[ clarification needed ] showed subtitled films, which were especially popular with foreign-language students. The Poytz family owned the cinema for 40 years, and made it one of the UK's most important art film cinemas outside London. [2]

In 1970 Star Associated Holdings Ltd bought the cinema, divided its single auditorium into two, and renamed it Studios One and Two. [5] The film selection became much more mainstream, and adult films became a regular part of the programme. [6] In 1976 Studio Two was renamed Studio X and briefly became a private club for more explicit adult films. [7]

In 1977 the cinema was renamed The Phoenix by new owners Charles and Kitty Cooper of Contemporary Films, who returned the repertoire to art house and foreign language films. Contemporary Films introduced late-night screenings every day of the week, which were very popular with local students. [3] Custom declined in the 1980s, as it did throughout the UK at this time. The Coopers reluctantly sold the cinema. [8]

In 1987 the cinema was used as a filming location in The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn, an episode of ITV's Inspector Morse . [9]

In 1989 Lyn Goleby and Tony Jones bought the cinema and made it the first venue in the Picturehouse Cinemas group, [3] which as of 2018 had 24 cinemas. On 6 December 2012 Cineworld bought Picturehouse Cinemas. [10] Although no longer independent, the Phoenix Picturehouse still maintains the appearance of an independent cinema. In March 2013 the cinema celebrated its centenary. Later that year Picturehouses published a book of its history. [11]

In August 2017 the cinema closed for a major two-month refurbishment of both of its cinema screens, reopening in October 2017. [12]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Line Cinema</span> American film production company

New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after acquired by Turner Broadcasting System in 1994; Turner later merged with Time Warner in 1996, and New Line was merged with Warner Bros. Pictures in 2008. The studio has been nicknamed, "The House that Freddy Built" due to the success of the Nightmare on Elm Street film series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Empire, Leicester Square</span> Cinema in Leicester Square, London

The Empire, Leicester Square is a cinema currently operated by Cineworld on the north side of Leicester Square, London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cineworld</span> British cinema chain

Cineworld Group plc is a British cinema operator headquartered in London, England. It is the world's second-largest cinema chain, with 9,518 screens across 790 sites in 10 countries: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, the United Kingdom and the United States. The group's primary brands are Cineworld and Picturehouse in the United Kingdom and Ireland, Cinema City in Eastern and Central Europe, Planet in Israel, and Regal Cinemas in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regal Cinemas</span> Movie theater chain in the United States

Regal Cinemas is an American movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. A division of Cineworld, Regal operates the second-largest theater circuit in the United States, with over 7,200 screens in 549 theaters as of October 2019. The three main theatre brands operated by Regal Entertainment Group are Regal Cinemas, Edwards Theatres, and United Artists Theatres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Picturehouse Cinemas</span> Cinema chain in the United Kingdom

Picturehouse Cinemas is a network of cinemas in the United Kingdom, operated by Picturehouse Cinemas Ltd and owned by Cineworld. The company runs its own film distribution arm, Picturehouse Entertainment, which has released acclaimed films such as David Lowery's A Ghost Story, Sally Potter's The Party and Francis Lee's God's Own Country, Custody, Capernaum and The Wife. A previous iteration of this distribution arm, which focused largely on alternative content, was sold in 2017 to Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire and rebranded as Trafalgar Releasing.

Odeon, stylised as ODEON, is a cinema brand name operating in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Norway, which along with UCI Cinemas and Nordic Cinema Group is part of the Odeon Cinemas Group subsidiary of AMC Theatres. It uses the famous name of the Odeon cinema circuit first introduced in Great Britain in 1930.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cineplex Entertainment</span> Canadian entertainment company and movie theater chain

Cineplex Inc. is a Canadian cinema and family entertainment centre chain headquartered in Toronto.

Famous Players Limited Partnership, is a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous movie theatre locations in Canada from British Columbia to Newfoundland and Labrador. The company was owned by Viacom Canada but was sold to Cineplex Galaxy LP in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jericho, Oxford</span> Human settlement in England

Jericho is an historic suburb of the English city of Oxford. It consists of the streets bounded by the Oxford Canal, Worcester College, Walton Street and Walton Well Road. Located outside the old city wall, it was originally a place for travellers to rest if they had reached the city after the gates had closed. The name Jericho may have been adopted to signify this 'remote place' outside the wall. As of February 2021, the population of Jericho and Osney wards was 6,995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Cameo, Edinburgh</span>

The Cameo is an Edinburgh cinema which started life as the King's Cinema on 8 January 1914 and is one of the oldest cinemas in Scotland still in use. Since becoming the Cameo in 1949, it has had a tradition of showing art house films. From 1949 onward it has been an important venue for the Edinburgh International Film Festival. It is at Tollcross, and since 1992 has been a three-screen cinema. The Cameo was an independent cinema until 2012, when it was bought by the Picturehouse chain, owned by Cineworld.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scala Theatre</span> Former theatre in London, England

The Scala Theatre was a theatre in Charlotte Street, London, off Tottenham Court Road. The first theatre on the site opened in 1772, and the theatre was demolished in 1969, after being destroyed by fire. From 1865 to 1882, the theatre was known as the Prince of Wales's Theatre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ritzy Cinema</span>

The Ritzy is a cinema in Brixton, London, England. It is a Grade II listed building. It is managed by Picturehouse Cinemas, who were bought by Cineworld in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norwich Cinema City</span>

Cinema City is a Grade I listed cultural cinema in the city of Norwich in Norfolk, England. The building is owned by Norwich City Council and the site is managed by the charity Cinema City Ltd, charity number 288309. Commercial activities - film screenings, bar and restaurant - are carried out by Picturehouse Cinemas Limited which operates a national chain of 'art house' cinemas, called Picturehouse. Picturehouse is part of the Cineworld chain. Cinema City Ltd undertakes education activities on site and throughout Norfolk through its education arm Cinema Plus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eden Court Theatre</span> Theatre in Inverness, Scotland

Eden Court Theatre is a large theatre, cinema and arts venue situated in Inverness, Scotland close to the banks of the River Ness. The theatre has recently undergone a complete refurbishment and major extension, adding a second theatre, two dedicated cinema screens, two performance/dance studios, improved dressing room and green room facilities and additional office space. The theatre's restaurant and bar facilities have also been totally overhauled and improved.

Thomas Hoegh is a Norwegian artist, investor and entrepreneur who oversees a portfolio of high-growth businesses in the creative sectors. Thomas directs films and theatre under the name Torstein Blixfjord. He was born in Oslo in 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cineworld Dublin</span>

Cineworld Dublin is the biggest cinema in Ireland, with 4 floors and 17 screens. It is located on Parnell Street, Dublin and is owned by the Cineworld cinema chain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ultimate Picture Palace</span>

The Ultimate Picture Palace is an independent cinema in Oxford, England. It is Oxford's only surviving independent cinema, showing a mixture of independent, mainstream, foreign language, and classic films.

Aberdeen has been the host of several theatres and concert halls through history. Some of them have been converted or destroyed over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belmont Filmhouse, Aberdeen</span> Historic site

Belmont Filmhouse was an arts cinema on Belmont Street, Aberdeen, Scotland which showed a mixture of films that generally would not be shown in a chain cinema and mainstream films. The cinema building is the property of Aberdeen City Council.

Contemporary Films is the oldest independent film distribution company in the UK, with the highest production of films and movies per year. It was founded by Charles Cooper (1910–2001) in 1951. It brought many acclaimed films from around the world to UK cinemas. In turn, cinemas became more lively as works by famous directors such as Andrzej Wajda, Miloš Forman, Ingmar Bergman, Jean Renoir, Robert Bresson, Sergei Eisenstein, Andrei Tarkovsky, Werner Herzog, Satyajit Ray, Yasujirō Ozu, Nagisa Oshima, Bernardo Bertolucci, and Luis Buñuel were presented to the British public. Contemporary Films continues to distribute films to cinemas and television, as well as DVDs to the general public.

References

  1. ↑ "Cine-files: The Phoenix Picturehouse, Oxford". The Guardian . 23 October 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 Waite, Debbie (18 January 2013). "Phoenix to Celebrate its Centenary in Reel Style". Oxford Mail . Newsquest . Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "History". Phoenix Centenary Blog. 11 March 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  4. ↑ Allison, Chan & Gennari 2013, p. 63.
  5. ↑ Allison, Chan & Gennari 2013, pp. 81–85.
  6. ↑ Chan 2013, p. 260.
  7. ↑ Allison, Chan & Gennari 2013, pp. 91–93.
  8. ↑ Allison, Chan & Gennari 2013, pp. 119–120.
  9. ↑ IMDB The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn (1987) https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0611659/locations?ref_=tt_dt_dt
  10. ↑ Allison, Chan & Gennari 2013, p. 153.
  11. ↑ Allison, Chan & Gennari 2013.
  12. ↑ "Historic city cinema to shut its doors for refurbishment".

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.