5 May 2021
We, along with the rest of the North East, have been eagerly anticipating the next phase announcements from the Government on the easing of lockdown restrictions. Currently, the anticipated roadmap date set for cinemas re-opening in some capacity is 17th May.
In the previous update we posted in March, we referenced that we had unfortunately suffered a flood back in January whilst the building remain closed. The flood has caused significant widespread damage after bursting through the ceiling of the 4th floor and cascading down the central stairway affecting doors, walls, floors and many other parts of the cinema. The volume of water had been building up for some period of time and potentially leaking between partitions and walls.
The extent of the damage has been now been fully investigated and following a long period of drying out and a thorough assessment by our insurers as to the extent of water damage caused, we are now aware of the full scope of repairs required to restore our beloved cinema building back to its previous state. Tender packs have been issued to contractors to carry out the repair work, and we expect the work to be underway at the end of May. We are reassured that the damage is repairable and that once our audiences do return, the cinema itself will look better than ever.
Currently we expect to have our building back in its entirety by the start of July, although there could be opportunity to open parts of the building sooner whilst repairs are ongoing. We will continue to post updates as to our plans on our website and social media.
Whilst the Tyneside Cinema team would ideally have liked to be in a position to re-open sooner, our intention is to open well and as early as we can given the current constraints. During this period, we will utilise the additional time to continue progress on the recommendations from the independent review, including reviewing all of our processes and procedures, providing essential training to our teams, and reintroducing our people back to the cinema safely and in a supportive way. We have the opportunity to build Tyneside Cinema into new ways of doing things and we intend that to be a fully inclusive process for the whole team, in order to get our beloved organisation ready for our audiences once again. We can’t wait to welcome you back.
11 March 2021
Following the recent announcement from the Government on the roadmap for easing of the lockdown, a notional date of 17th May has now been set for the re-opening of cinemas in England. Current guidance is that some social distancing measures will remain in place, with capacity potentially being limited to 50%.
Our intention is to aim towards a re-open date as close to the 17th May as possible, and we eagerly await confirmation on the operating restrictions over the coming weeks. Unfortunately whilst our beloved building has remained closed for almost a year, we have suffered an added complication of significant flood damage. A drying process is underway and we are assessing the extent of the water damage and subsequent repairs needed.
We will share further updates and confirmation of our re-opening date as soon as we are in a position to do so. In the meantime the majority of the team at Tyneside Cinema will remain on furlough, so if you would like to get us in touch with us we will respond as soon as possible.
Take care and stay safe.
03 December 2020
It is with a heavy heart that we must inform our valued audiences that we have taken the difficult decision to remain closed for the remainder of 2020.
Despite all of the effort and hard work we have done to our beloved building to ensure the cinema is safe for our customers and our team, Tier 3 rules mean we have been prevented from re-opening as we had hoped.
With the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the next review of the tier system, and government choices around how cultural institutions may operate beyond 16th December, opening before Christmas is no longer a viable option for us.
The arts and culture and hospitality industries UK wide have been severely impacted by the ongoing Coronavirus. It has continued to pose challenges around our detailed planning in relation to the film programme, our sourcing and stock levels for our cafes and bars, and our ability to operate at a reduced capacity that conforms with social distancing best practice.
We will return in 2021 and we eagerly await the re-opening of our doors and the opportunity to welcome everyone back. We will continue to publish updates on our website to keep you updated. In the meantime we wish you a peaceful Christmas and a very very Happy New Year.
