Abandoned cinema set for rebirth after £2m investment

The former cinema

A neglected and abandoned cinema in the Black Country is to be brought back into use seven years after it closed down.

The former Gaumont Cinema in Wednesbury was converted into a bingo hall in the 1970s when traditional provincial cinemas went into decline.

However, as the popularity of the game waned, the decision was taken in 2010 to close the building.

The chances of it ever being brought back into commercial use – let alone screening films again – had appeared very remote indeed.

However, in a remarkable change of fortune, the building, which dates back to 1938 and includes many of the art deco features which characterised cinemas of the era, has now been sold to a company that specialises in the conversion of old buildings, typically old picture houses, into fully functioning, modern cinemas.

Acting on behalf of the building’s owners, Wednesbury Enterprises Ltd, chartered surveyor and property consultancy, Sanderson Weatherall has negotiated the sale of the property to Picturedrome Cinemas.

Picturedrome has pledged to invest £2m into the property, off High Bullen, to convert it into an impressive 900-seater, five-screen facility.

Peter Fowles, agent in Sanderson Weatherall’s Birmingham office, said: “We are really pleased to have secured this sale for Wednesbury Enterprises and it’s great that the site will operate as a cinema once again.

“Picturedrome Cinemas have pledged a £2m investment into the cinema’s renovation and we are excited to see what they do with the space, especially as they plan to keep a number of the building’s original art décor features.

“The unique prospect of this site meant that we received significant levels of interest. We had enquiries for a number of different building uses including; a church, dance studio, theatre, conference centre and residential development.”

The conversion is expected to see the cinema reopen next summer.

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