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Phoenix Cinema
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Phoenix Cinema is an independent cinema in East Finchley, London, which was opened in 1910 as the 'East Finchley Picturedrome'. It is probably the oldest continuously-running cinema in the UK, and shows mainly arthouse films.
It first showed films with sound in 1929 (it was then known as the 'Coliseum'), and in 1937 the building was redesigned and rebuilt in a more art deco style and reopened as the 'Rex' in 1938. It took its current name in 1975 when it was purchased and run by the distribution company Contemporary Films and concentrated on showing independent, foreign and specialist films, as it does today. The cinema was sold in 1985 and was earmarked to be demolished but was saved by a grant from the Greater London Council after a campaign by local residents (with the patronage of Maureen Lipman) and is now administrated by the Phoenix Cinema Trust, relying on its own income and donations to survive.
It is distinctive on East Finchley's high road by its large neon sign on the side of the building. Its patrons are Maureen Lipman, Mike Leigh, Michael Palin, Bill Paterson, and Victoria Wood.