The Vue cinema at Ocean Plaza in Southport will reopen on Friday, July 31.
The cinema chain had originally planned to reopen this weekend, in line with the Government’s easing of lockdown restrictions that allows cinemas to begin operating again from Saturday.
But the chain, which operates 91 cinemas throughout the UK and Ireland, has now delayed reopening by three weeks to the end of this month, along with Cineworld.
The opening date is partly due to the delayed release of blockbuster movies Mulan and Tenet.
Along with all cinemas across the country, it closed its doors mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Vue CEO Tim Richards said: “Having taken comprehensive steps to safeguard our staff and customers, Vue is ready to welcome back customers to its UK cinemas to enjoy the escapism of the big screen experience.
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“We know from successfully re-opening cinemas across Europe that audiences after lockdown are itching to enjoy the big screen experience again, with the added reassurance of rigorous new operating protocols and appropriate physical distancing.
“We also want to offer a great choice of content for the big screen experience and, despite having many classic films and recent releases lined up to whet the appetite of cinema audiences this summer, the worldwide rescheduling of the release dates of Mulan and Tenet has prompted us to review our opening dates.”.
Vue operates 228 sites over ten countries and has already reopened around 70 sites in Germany, Denmark, Holland, Lithuania, Poland and Italy. It plans to reopen in the UK with a 4K remaster of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and the re-release of Christopher Nolan’s Inception.
Odeon and Showcase remain the only multiplex brands planning to reopen from this Saturday.
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