Iconic cinema in Chelsea put on the market
An iconic Grade II ex-cinema in Chelsea has been put on the market, with potential to turn it into a hotel, housing or a member’s club.
The closure of the cinema, which Hugh Grant called “strangely unbearable”, sparked headlines last year.
The site, which originally opened in 1930 as the Forum Theatre, became the 26th cinema in the Picturehouse family in December 2019.
Between 1970 and 1996, the auditoriums, stage area and fly tower were subdivided into six cinema screening rooms.
Picturehouse refurbished the interior in 2019 before ceasing operations last July and stripping the building of all cinema-related uses.
Future potential uses for the site include prime residential units, a hotel, a Members’ Club, or hospitality and leisure uses, according to Savills.
Troubled times for cinema
The Grade II Chelsea Art Deco property is owned by Martin’s properties, which has previously said it would try to retain cinema facilities.
However, last year it said keeping film capacity was proving “increasingly challenging” due to the “severe challenges faced by the UK cinema industry in recent years with reducing admissions, made worse at Fulham Road by increased local competition and a building that is unsuitable for a 21st century cinema.”
Simon Burke, co-founder of Revolting Spaces – a collection of LGBTQ+ hospitality venues in London which owns independent cinema The Ardzner – told Morning Wire last Autumn that upcoming tax hikes will compound issues in the cinema industry.
“The whole sector, especially the lower-margin areas such as independent theatres and cinemas, are going to take a hit as a result of the incoming tax environment. These taxes are nothing but political choices.
“Cinemas are culturally important spaces, these changes will undoubtedly lead to independent cinemas struggling to stay open or to expand,” he said.