Star City is a family leisure and entertainment complex in Nechells, Birmingham, England. It is located in the north east of the city very close to Junction 6 of the M6 motorway ( Spaghetti Junction ), and Aston railway station. [1]
Star City is a family leisure and entertainment complex in Nechells, Birmingham, England. It is located in the north east of the city very close to Junction 6 of the M6 motorway ( Spaghetti Junction ), and Aston railway station. [1]
This former derelict industrial land was developed as part of a regeneration scheme for the Heartlands area and to change Birmingham's image for the 21st century. Its centrepiece is the 25-screen (formerly 30-screen) Vue cinema, at the time the largest cinema in Europe and originally opened as Warner Brothers Cinema. The construction was carried out by Wolverhampton based firm Carillion. [2] The complex was formally opened in July 2000 by actors George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg to coincide with the UK premier of The Perfect Storm. With some 392,000 square feet (36,400 m2) of leisure space, it is one of the largest leisure complexes in the United Kingdom. [3]
A 22-lane Megabowl (now branded as 'Tenpin') bowling alley was revealed when Star City opened and has remained since. By the end of 2003, it was the largest leisure park in the country ahead of The Printworks in Manchester and The Mailbox in Birmingham city centre. [4]
A Goals soccer centre opened in 2007 with fourteen floodlit pitches situated on the roof. Goals also incorporates a Sports Bar which shows year round sporting events on both Sky and Terrestrial TV. [5]
The centre underwent a major redevelopment in 2008. England's first indoor 36 hole adventure mini golf course, 'Adventure Island Mini Golf', opened on 11 June 2008. [6]
Star City is located in Nechells where ethnic minorities make up the majority of the area's population. [7] As a result, the screening of Bollywood films by Vue's theatre at the site is seen as an attraction for visitors. Entertainment for the venue includes a visit made by the Canadian Cirque du Soleil in 2005. [8]
On 23 November 2019 at the Vue cinema, during a screening of Blue Story , which depicts gang violence, a violent disturbance broke out. Some of those involved carried machetes. Seven West Midlands Police officers were injured and a number of people were arrested. [9] [10] Following the incident, Vue banned all future screenings of the film from its cinemas. [9]
Braehead is a commercial development located at the former site of Braehead Power Station in Renfrew on the south bank of the River Clyde in Renfrew, Renfrewshire. It is particularly notable for its large shopping centre, arena and leisure facilities.
Millennium Point is a multi-use meeting and conference venue, public building and charitable trust in Birmingham, England, situated in the developing Eastside of the city centre. The complex contains multiple event spaces, including a 354-seat auditorium, formerly Giant Screen IMAX cinema; Birmingham Science Museum, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire's School of Acting and Birmingham City University's Faculty of Computing, Engineering and The Built Environment, part of Birmingham Metropolitan College.
Mailbox Birmingham is a mixed-use development located within the city centre of Birmingham, England. It houses British luxury department store chain Harvey Nichols, and the BBC Birmingham studios.
Bartley Green is a residential suburban area and electoral ward in Birmingham, England, 5 miles (8 km) south west of the city centre. The ward is part of the Birmingham Edgbaston constituency and is represented in parliament by Labour Co-operative MP Preet Gill.
Liverpool ONE is a shopping, residential, and leisure complex in Liverpool, England. The project involved the redevelopment of 42 acres of land in the city centre. It is a retail-led development anchored by the department store John Lewis. Debenhams had previously been an anchor tenant until the closure of its Liverpool One store in March 2021, with Marks & Spencer due to take its place in mid-2023. Additional elements include leisure facilities, apartments, offices, public open spaces, restaurants, and transport improvements. The completion of Liverpool ONE significantly boosted the local economy, while lifting Liverpool into the top five most popular retail destinations in the UK.
Sport has always been important in Birmingham, England, from the hundreds of diverse grass-roots sports clubs to internationally famous teams, associations and venues.
Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet is an outlet centre in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, England.
Nechells is a district ward in central Birmingham, England, whose population in 2011 was 33,957. It is also a ward within the formal district of Ladywood. Nechells local government ward includes areas, for example parts of Birmingham city centre, which are not part of the historic district of Nechells as such, now often referred to in policy documents as "North Nechells, Bloomsbury and Duddeston".
Printworks is an urban entertainment venue offering a cinema, clubs and eateries, located on the corner of Withy Grove and Corporation Street in Manchester city centre, England.
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Valley Centertainment is a leisure and entertainment complex in the Don Valley in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It was built on land previously occupied by steel mills which also includes what is now Meadowhall shopping centre and the Utilita Arena. It is home to several restaurants, bars, a cinema, and a bowling alley as well as other attractions.
Little Stanney is a suburban village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is located on the Wirral Peninsula between Chester and Ellesmere Port.
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in Britain – commonly referred to as the second city of the United Kingdom – with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper. Birmingham borders the Black Country to its west and together with its city of Wolverhampton and towns including Dudley and Solihull to the south-east, forms the West Midlands conurbation. The wider metropolitan area has a population of 4.3 million, making it the largest outside of London.
The city of Birmingham, England is home to an evolving media industry, including news and magazine publishers, radio and television networks, film production and specialist educational media training. The city's first newspaper was published in 1732.
Resorts World Birmingham is an entertainment complex in Solihull, near Birmingham England. It has the largest casino in the United Kingdom, shopping mall, restaurants and cinemas. Construction began in February 2013 and finished in autumn 2015. The Casino is owned by Genting.
The Light Cinemas is a British independent cinema chain that exclusively screens films using digital cinema technology.
The Hollywood Bowl Group is a company that runs the Hollywood Bowl branded multi lane ten-pin bowling and Puttstars brand minigolf centres in the UK and Splitsville bowling in Canada.
Rushden Lakes is a major shopping and leisure complex in Rushden, Northamptonshire. It first opened in 2017 with further retail and leisure units added later including a Cineworld cinema which opened in 2019. It is situated just off the A45 on the northern outskirts of Rushden. There are around 40 shops predominantly focussing on fashion. The largest retailers are Primark, Frasers and Marks and Spencer. There are over a dozen cafes and restaurants including Bill's, Five Guys, Nando's, Pizza Express and Wagamama.
Blue Story is a 2019 British musical crime drama film written, directed, and narrated by Rapman through the medium of rap and starring Stephen Odubola and Micheal Ward, with Eric Kofi-Abrefa, Khali Best, Karla-Simone Spence, Richie Campbell, Jo Martin and Junior Afolabi Salokun in supporting roles. Serving as Rapman's feature directorial debut, the film is based on his 2014 YouTube series of the same name, which in turn is based on the real life gangs - the Peckham Boys and Ghetto Boys. The story follows best friends Marco (Ward) and Timmy (Odubola) who, from different areas of London, find themselves becoming enemies in a violent and insidious postcode war.
