Everyman Cinema is not necessarily a cinema chain you will have heard of before.
The group has 16 sites across the UK, including Birmingham’s Mailbox and London’s Canary Wharf. They recently acquired sites from Odeon and have been growing over the past couple of years, with a view to “spearheading the revival of independent cinema in the UK”.
They will be bringing a three-screen cinema to the centre of Wokingham, complementing the borough’s other cinema – the larger Showcase Cinema at Winnersh.
The company aims to provide “a unique experience” and its website includes a quote from film director Roman Polanski: “Cinema should make you forget you are sitting in a theatre”.
Everyman attempts to do by ensuring all of its cinemas have a unique bar or foyer space and its staff attempt to “create a truly memorable experience that exceeds expectations and reaches the highest standards possible in comfort and entertainment”.
Wokingham Borough Council’s Bernie Pich said that the company had been chosen because of its unique offering.
He said: “Everyman prides itself on an exceptional film watching experience, from great design and service, to comfortable seating and good atmosphere.
“It will offer something for everyone, with a programme which balances blockbuster movies with more select films, alongside live screenings of theatre and opera from some of the leading performance venues in the world.”
And it will offer quite a lot for film buffs of all ages. When it opens in Wokingham, it will bring with it some of the special events and services that it has in other areas as well as the latest releases.
Next month, it will run a Music and Film festival, which includes a special celebration screening of Kidulthood in the presence of the original cast, as well as other music-film related showings.
Special live broadcasts from big theatre and opera companies mean that visitors can watch works by groups such as the Royal Shakespeare Company, Glyndebourne, the Royal Opera House and the National Theatre.
And that’s not all: there’s a special silver screening, aimed at over 55s. This is a matinee showing of a recent release and the ticket price includes refreshments: a free hot drink and a slice of cake or a cookie.
A Morning Matinee season is specifically aimed at film-lovers living with dementia and their family and carers, showing classic films such as Passport To Pimlico or The Ladykillers.
Like South Hill Park, it offers a baby club which is for parents or carers of children under 12 months.
And at weekends it runs special screenings for accompanied under 14s at its Children’s Club.
Cinema fans who want to ensure a comfortable viewing experience will be reassured with the selection on offer: it has standard seating or premier seating which it promises is “a mixture of luxury armchairs and sofas”. Premier Gallery seats are situated on a mezzanine level, offering a range of sofas and armchairs with a unique view of the screen.
In the Hampstead branch, the chain has special two-seat sofa booths with footstools offering, it says “a more intimate seat with a fantastic view of the screen”.
Everyman also offers concessions for students and senior citizens at off-peak periods.
