Ritzy Cinema

Last updated

Ritzy Picturehouse
The Ritzy
RitzyCinemaBrixton.jpg
Ritzy Cinema
Former namesThe Electric Pavilion, The Pullman Cinema
AddressBrixton Oval, Coldharbour Lane, Brixton, London SW2 1JG
Coordinates 51°27′41″N0°06′53″W / 51.4613°N 0.1148°W / 51.4613; -0.1148 Coordinates: 51°27′41″N0°06′53″W / 51.4613°N 0.1148°W / 51.4613; -0.1148
OwnerCineworld
OperatorPicturehouse Cinemas
Construction
Opened1911 (1911)
ArchitectE. C. Homer and Lucas
BuilderIsrael Davis
Website
picturehouses.com/cinema/Ritzy_Picturehouse

The Ritzy is a cinema in Brixton, London, England. It is a Grade II listed building. [1] It is managed by Picturehouse Cinemas, who were bought by Cineworld in 2012.

Contents

The cinema opened on 11 March 1911 as "the Electric Pavilion". It was built by E.C. Homer and Lucas for Israel Davis, one of a noted family of cinema developers, and was one of England's earliest purpose-built cinemas, seating over 750 seats in the single auditorium. Like many cinemas of the period, it was fitted with an organ. It was seen as a 'scruffy relation' to the nearby Palladium, and was known as the 'flea pit'. Sound films began showing in 1929. [2]

The neighbouring Brixton Theatre was completely destroyed by bombing in 1940, which allowed the Ritzy to expand into the vacant space. [3]

In 1954, it was renovated by noted cinema architect George Coles, who installed CinemaScope: the cinema was renamed "the Pullman" and the organ was removed. It was later renamed "the Classic", before closure in 1976. After this, it was re-invented as "The Little Bit Ritzy", run in collaboration with London Cinema Collective. [4] A collaboration between Lambeth Council and the management of the time ensured the cinema's survival, with the facade being rebuilt and restored to near-original condition.[ citation needed ]

During the 1980s, the cinema developed a reputation as having a left-wing agenda, so much so that the incumbent manager was motivated to place an advert in the local press advising potential patrons that not every film that the cinema screened was "left-wing or gay". [5]

Today, the cinema is owned by Picturehouse Cinemas, and operates as a multi-screen complex with bar and café facilities. Its official name is now "Ritzy Picturehouse" although it is still commonly known as the Ritzy Cinema. In 1999, Albion Ventures invested £8million in Picturehouse to help fund the development of several of their cinemas, including the Ritzy.

In 2009, the decor and colour scheme was restored from its original style and a live music venue was added, called Upstairs.

Living wage dispute

There has been an ongoing labour dispute from Ritzy Cinema Workers since 2007, when staff were paid £5.35 per hour. [6] City Screen, which then owned Picturehouse Cinemas since 2003, refused to recognise the BECTU union and set up an alternative called 'The Forum'. After a court case, BECTU was recognised and negotiations began in 2004. [7]

The dispute re-emerged in 2014 over the payment of the London Living Wage. Picturehouse has stated that "we cannot predict the future levels of the London Living Wage and we cannot build a business plan around a rate that is not within our ability to forecast." [8]

Picturehouse says that it pays its staff a 'fair wage' of £9.10 per hour, compared to the voluntary London Living Wage of £10.20. Strike action by staff continued in 2017 following the sacking of representatives of the BECTU union which represents cinema workers. [9] Public figures such as Sir Ian McKellen, Ken Loach, Benedict Cumberbatch, Andrew Garfield and then shadow chancellor John McDonnell have publicly supported the campaign. [10] Sacked staff representatives whose cases were heard at employment tribunal were unanimously found to be unfairly dismissed by the company, citing a 'lack of neutrality at the investigation and disciplinary stages'. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brixton</span> District in the London Borough of Lambeth in south London

Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century as communications with central London improved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Borough of Lambeth</span> Borough in United Kingdom

Lambeth is a London borough in South London, England, which forms part of Inner London. Its name was recorded in 1062 as Lambehitha and in 1255 as Lambeth. The geographical centre of London is at Frazier Street near Lambeth North tube station, though nearby Charing Cross on the other side of the Thames in the City of Westminster is traditionally considered the centre of London.

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

Lambeth is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey. It is situated one mile south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area experienced some slight growth in the medieval period as part of the manor of Lambeth Palace. By the Victorian era the area had seen significant development as London expanded, with dense industrial, commercial and residential buildings located adjacent to one another. The changes brought by World War II altered much of the fabric of Lambeth. Subsequent development in the late 20th and early 21st centuries has seen an increase in the number of high-rise buildings. The area is home to the International Maritime Organization. Lambeth is home to one of the largest Portuguese-speaking communities in the UK, and is the second most commonly spoken language in Lambeth after English.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Paddick, Baron Paddick</span> British Liberal Democrat Politician

Brian Leonard Paddick, Baron Paddick, is a British politician and retired police officer, currently sitting in the House of Lords as a life peer. He was the Liberal Democrat candidate for the London mayoral elections of 2008 and 2012. He was, until his retirement in May 2007, Deputy Assistant Commissioner in London's Metropolitan Police Service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Public and Commercial Services Union</span> British trade union

The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) is the sixth largest trade union in the United Kingdom. Most of its members work in UK government departments and other public bodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Living wage</span> Minimum income to meet a workers basic needs

A living wage is defined as the minimum income necessary for a worker to meet their basic needs. This is not the same as a subsistence wage, which refers to a biological minimum, or a solidarity wage, which refers to a minimum wage tracking labor productivity. Needs are defined to include food, housing, and other essential needs such as clothing. The goal of a living wage is to allow a worker to afford a basic but decent standard of living through employment without government subsidies. Due to the flexible nature of the term "needs", there is not one universally accepted measure of what a living wage is and as such it varies by location and household type. A related concept is that of a family wage – one sufficient to not only support oneself, but also to raise a family.

<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">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.

A zero-hour contract is a type of employment contract between an employer and an employee whereby the employer is not obliged to provide any minimum number of working hours to the employee. The term 'zero-hour contract' is primarily used in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brixton Road</span>

Brixton Road is a road in the London Borough of Lambeth, leading from the Oval at Kennington to Brixton, where it forms the high street and then forks into Effra Road and Brixton Hill at St Matthew's church at the junction with Acre Lane and Coldharbour Lane. Brixton Market is located in Electric Avenue near Brixton Underground station and in a network of covered arcades adjacent to the two railway viaducts. The market arcades were declared listed buildings in 2009 following controversial proposals by Lambeth Council to replace them with a large US-style mall. The former "Brixton Oval" is at the southern end with Lambeth Town Hall, the Ritzy Cinema, the Brixton Tate Library and St Matthew's church. The space was renamed Windrush Square in 2010, in honour of the area's early Caribbean migrants and the HMT Empire Windrush, which in 1948 brought 492 passengers from Jamaica to London.

The National Association of Theatrical Television and Kine Employees (NATTKE) was a trade union in the United Kingdom which existed between 1890 and 1984. It represented employees who worked in theatres, cinemas and television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lambeth College</span> College in England

South Bank Colleges is a further education college in the London Borough of Lambeth. It was formed in 1992 from three former institutions – Vauxhall College of Building and Further Education, Brixton College of Further Education, and South London College. The college serves just under 10,000 students from its two campuses at Clapham and Brixton as of 2019. The Nine Elms campus is currently undergoing development and this third site will specialise in the provision of STEAM. South Bank Colleges joined London South Bank University (LSBU) Group on 31 January 2019, and became one of only three national pilots designed to bring Further and Higher Education together. Now, South Bank Colleges comprises Lambeth College, Lambeth College and London South Bank Technical College.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Brixton railway station</span> Abandoned train stop in London

East Brixton railway station was a railway station in Brixton, south London. It was opened as Loughborough Park by the London, Brighton & South Coast Railway in 1866. Regular passenger service was the South London line from London Victoria to London Bridge terminal stations in central London. Initially provided with a steam passenger service, competition from electric trams caused a conversion to overhead line electric operation in 1909. The station became part of the Southern Railway in 1923 and overhead line electrification was swapped for third rail in 1928. The station lost patronage after the opening of Brixton Underground station in 1971. There was a fire at the station in 1975 and it was closed by British Rail in January 1976. The station was located next to the rail bridge over Barrington Road, near Coldharbour Lane. Since 2012 London Overground trains pass through the site of the former station without stopping and there has been some campaigning to reopen it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santander Cycles</span> Public bicycle hire scheme in London

Santander Cycles is a public bicycle hire scheme in London in the United Kingdom. The scheme's bicycles are popularly known as Boris Bikes, after Boris Johnson who was Mayor of London when the scheme began operating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Matthew's Church, Brixton</span> Church

St Matthew's Church is a Church of England church in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade II* listed building which occupies a prominent position at the junction of Brixton Road, Brixton Hill and Effra Road. The church was constructed following the Church Building Act 1818 and was consecrated in 1824.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Living Staff Living Wage</span>

The Living Staff Living Wage campaign is an umbrella term for the organised workers behind industrial actions at Picturehouse Cinemas in the United Kingdom since 2014. It is an expansion of the ongoing Ritzy Living Wage campaign, initiated by BECTU union members at the Ritzy Cinema in Brixton, London. Since 2016, there have been coordinated strike actions across five other Picturehouse cinemas, Hackney, Piccadilly Central, Crouch End, Brighton Duke of York's and East Dulwich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Voices of the World</span> Independent grassroots trade union

United Voices of the World (UVW) is an independent grassroots trade union, established in London in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brixton Library</span> Public library in Brixton, London

The Brixton Library is a public library in the London Borough of Lambeth in Brixton, South West London. It was built in the 1890s by the sugar magnate Sir Henry Tate and is a Grade II listed building.

Henrietta Elizabeth Spiers was a British costume designer for the theatre and silent films, a screenwriter, and an author. Columbia University's Women Film Pioneers Project counts her among those on its list of 'Unhistoricized Women Film Pioneers'.

References

  1. ↑ Historic England. "Ritzy Cinema (1249916)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  2. ↑ "From Electric Pavilion to the Little Bit Ritzy: The story of a legendary landmark". Brixton Blog. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  3. ↑ "Cinefile: The Ritzy Cinema's Centenary". Londonist. 25 March 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  4. ↑ "Keeping up with Pop Ritzy | Pop Brixton". www.popbrixton.org. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  5. ↑ Adam Lusher (19 March 2014). "Nudge, nudge: Python supports ushers striking for the living wage". The Independent. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
  6. ↑ "Ritzy Cinema staff strike against poverty pay. – UK Indymedia". indymedia.org.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  7. ↑ "2004 Staff Forum or Trade Union?". Picturehouse Workers' Blog. 16 July 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  8. ↑ "Cinema staff go on strike over pay". BBC News. 22 June 2014. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  9. ↑ Boycott-Owen, Mason (23 September 2017). "Brixton's Ritzy cinema workers to strike as pay row enters second year". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  10. ↑ "Brixton cinema staff continue strike action as threat of sack looms – South West Londoner". South West Londoner. 2 November 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  11. ↑ "Tribunal finds that Ritzy reps were unfairly dismissed - BECTU". www.bectu.org.uk. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
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.