Cinemas in Birmingham
The oldest working cinema in the UK is the Electric in Birmingham Southside. However, most older style picture houses in Birmingham have long since closed, the main exceptions being the New Street Odeon and the Empire in Sutton Coldfield.
The modern cinemas are multiplexes located in leisure or retail parks. The largest is the 25-screen Vue movie theatre at Star City.
The AMC is at Broadway Plaza off Ladywood Middleway in Five Ways. It is a twelve screen cinema with plush stadium seating, listening devices, wheelchair access and full digital Dolby EX sound. The seats are high-backed with retractable armrests.
An adult ticket costs £4.00 before 5pm and £5.75 thereafter. Junior, senior and student tickets costs £4.00 at all times. The cinema contains a fully-licensed bar: the Starlight Lounge. There is secure on-site parking for 1400 vehicles. AMC Website
Cineworld is a twelve screen cinema on upper Broad Street in Five Ways. All the screens have wheelchair access and there are four disabled toilets. The cinema shows mainstream Hollywood and some Bollywood films. Some movies are screened in 3D and digital format. There is a licensed bar.
An adult ticket costs £4.20 before 6pm and £6.00 thereafter. Senior, student and under-14 tickets are charged at £4.20. Adults are charged an extra £1.90 for 3D films and seniors, students and under-14's, an extra £1.30.
Adult tickets are £4.20 (plus £1.50 for 3D films) on bargain Tuesdays. Moviegoers can buy an unlimited entrance card for £13.50 per month. Cineworld Website
Electric Station Street
The Electric Cinema, which first opened in December 1909, is located on Station Street in Southside. It is the oldest working cinema in the United Kingdom and has been lovingly restored to its 1930's art deco specification by entrepreneur Thomas Hawes.
The Electric is now an independent centre for making and exhibiting films. As such, it shows "the best in independent and intelligent mainstream films" and does not inflict endless commercials on its guests. Filmgoers can opt out of standard seating and book one of eleven luxury sofas.
The main feature generally starts 10 minutes after the scheduled time. The cinema has a second high definition digital screen dedicated to "the latest in D-cinema releases". The standard ticket price is £6, concessions are £4 and the charge per person per sofa seat is £12 (as at December 2009). Electric Website
The Empire is a thirteen screen multiplex at Great Park in Rubery. Screens 1, 2, 5, 7, 9 and 13 are equipped with Dolby Digital DTS and the remainder with Dolby Digital. Screen 7 is the largest auditorium with 530 seats whilst screen 13 is the smallest with 82 seats.
All screens are equipped with hearing loops and feature wheelchair access with wheelchair spaces next to the seats so that disabled visitors can watch movies with their friends.
The cinema accepts the CEA card which entitles a disabled person to be accompanied by a carer without additional charge. There is ample on-site parking and a fully licensed bar. Screen 13 is a licensed premier screen with a private bar.
Standard adult tickets are £5.95 peak and £4.75 off-peak (before 5pm Mo-Fri excluding Bank Holidays). Seniors, children and students are generally charged £4.25 (as at December 2009) Empire Website
The Empire is a four-screen cinema in Sutton Coldfield Town. It is located on Maney Corner, a one way street parallel to the Birmingham Road (A5127).
All four screens possess an induction loop facility. The largest has 592 seats and the smallest 100 seats. Screen 1 is equipped with Dolby Digital Surround Sound; the other three have Dolby spectral recording. Screens 1 and 2 do not have wheelchair access; screen 3 has one wheelchair space and screen 4, four.
Standard adult tickets are £5.95 peak and £4.75 off-peak (before 5pm Mo-Fri excluding Bank Holidays). Seniors, children and students are generally charged £4.25 (as at December
The cinema is one quarter of a mile from Sutton Coldfield town centre. There is a 50-space pay and display on Duke Street, roughly 150 metres away. The Empire tends to show mainstream Hollywood films. Empire Website
IMAX Eastside
The Birmingham IMAX (Image Maximum) is at Millennium Point in Eastside. Its screen is as tall as a five storey building and as wide as four buses parked end-to-end. The 42 speakers create a wall of digital surround sound.
Educational films selected by school groups are shown in term time from Monday-Friday at 10.30am, 11.30 am and 12.30 pm. General releases are shown at other times, often in 3-D format. Some movies are digitally remastered (DMR) from conventional 35 mm to larger-than-life format.
Ticket prices for adults are £8.00 for standard IMAX and £9 for DMR IMAX. Children and concessions are charged at £6.15 for standard IMAX and £7.15 for DMR IMAX (as at December 2009).
There is secure on-site parking for 750 vehicles and good wheelchair access with 8 bays in the auditorium. Wheelchair users should phone in advance. IMAX Website
Odeon New Street
The Odeon on New Street in the Retail Quarter has eight screens. The largest auditorium contains 390 seats and the smallest, 80.
An adult ticket costs £4.50 (premier £6.00) after 5pm and all day on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays, and £3.50 (premier £5.00) at all other times. Seniors, students and under-15's are charged £3.50 for a standard ticket and £5.00 for a premier ticket at all times (as at December 2009).
The cinema shows standard general releases and some Bollywood films. It also holds mid-morning "senior screen" performances of classics and the best modern films with free tea & coffee.
Children's films are shown on Saturday & Sunday mornings and during school holidays. Standard and premier tickets for special junior and senior screenings are £2.50.
The cinema also holds a weekly Directors Chair when independent, art house, limited release & foreign language films are shown. Odeon Website
Showcase Kingsbury Road
The Showcase is a twelve-screen multiplex on the Kingsbury Road in Tyburn. It features custom-designed deep-cushioned stadium-style seating, full disabled access and Dolby digital stereo sound. There is ample free on-site parking and a ReelKool party room. Showcase Website
The Vue at Star city in Nechells is a multiplex with twenty-five screens including three Gold Class screens with luxury leather seating and a separate lounge bar.
Selected screens are equipped with state-of-the-art digital projectors. The largest auditorium has 539 seats and the smallest 37 seats.
A supersaver adult ticket (Mo-Th before 5pm) is £5.40; a saver ticket (Fri before 5pm & Mo-Thu after 5pm) is £6.50 and a peak ticket (Sat, Sun & after 5pm Fri) is £7.20. The ticket prices for seniors & children are £3.50, £4.25 and £4.70; for teens £4.05, £4.90, £5.40 and for students £4.30, £5.20 and 5.75. Gold Class tickets are £14.80 after 5pm on Friday and all day Saturday and Sunday, and £8.20 at other times.
The Vue shows a mix
of Hollywood mainstream and Bollywood films. Kids films are shown on
Saturday and Sunday mornings. Children pay £1.70 for these shows and one
child can be accompanied by one adult without additional charge. The
cinema has full wheelchair access. There is a free car park with 32
designated disabled bays.
Vue Website
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