Odeon Luxe Leicester Square

History

The Odeon cinema building was completed by Sir Robert McAlpine in 1937 to the design of Harry Weedon and Andrew Mather on the site of Nevill's Victorian Turkish baths and the adjoining Alhambra Theatre a large music hall dating from the 1850s. The site cost £550,000, and the cinema took seven months to build, at a cost of £232,755, with 2116 seats. The opening night was Tuesday 2 November 1937; the film shown that night was The Prisoner of Zenda.

The interior was an art-deco auditorium, with a ribbed ceiling and sidewalls, featuring concealed strip lighting in coves, and two bas relief sculptures of naked nymphs were positioned on the front splay walls, as if leaping towards the screen. All the seats were covered in a faux-leopard skin material. A modernisation in 1967 removed many of the original features, with all of the ribbed plasterwork from the balcony to the proscenium replaced by smooth finishes. A refurbishment in 1998 included new versions of some lost details, including the figures, and seating upholstery pattern.

The UK's first widescreen (screen ratio 1.66:1) was installed and premiered on 14 May 1953; the film shown was Tonight We Sing. The British public debut of CinemaScope (screen ratio 2.55:1) followed on 19 November 1953 with the quasi-biblical epic, The Robe. (The first cinema to install CinemaScope in the UK was the Odeon Tottenham Court Road on 9 June 1953, but it was not open to the public until later).

The theatre's chief engineer, Nigel Wolland, was appointed MBE for services to the film industry in 2007. The theatre's general manager, Chris Hilton, was appointed MBE for services to the film industry in 2010.

After Nigel Wolland's retirement in 2006, Mark Nice was appointed the cinema's chief engineer. Mark Nice was later promoted to the position of Odeon company engineer with Toni Purvis and Michael Mannix assuming the role of Operations Manager Digital.

The first Dolby Cinema system to be installed in the UK is at the Odeon in Leicester Square. This introduced a combination of Dolby Vision dual-laser projection system and a Dolby Atmos sound system.

Screens 2 – 5

Five screens, each seating between fifty and sixty patrons, were added in April 1990 in what was once an alleyway running alongside the main house. The screens were originally known as Odeon Mezzanine and were renamed Odeon Studios in 2012. Following the refurbishment in 2018, the number of screens was reduced to four with reduced capacity and renamed as Screens 2 – 5.

Recent developments

In 2018 Odeon undertook a full refurbishment at a projected cost of £1015 million, which saw the building retained as a single-screen cinema with stalls and circle levels, with the stated intention to maintain its character. The cinema closed on 10 January 2018 with an anticipated reopening in time for the BFI London Film Festival in October—which it failed to meet. The cinema reopened on 21 December 2018 rebranded as part of the Odeon Luxe chain, with a reduced capacity in luxury seats, an enhanced concession offering, and the first commercial Dolby Cinema screen to open in the UK.

References

Sources

• Guide to British Theatres 1750–1950, John Earl and Michael Sell pp. 128 (Theatres Trust, 2000)

References

1. Eyles, Allen. (2002). "Odeon Cinemas Volume=1: Oscar Deutsch Entertains Our Nation". British Film Institute.
2. Steffan Laugharne, Ken Roe. "Cinema Treasures – Odeon Leicester Square". Cinema Treasures.
3. "Odeon Leicester Square: World Premiere of 'Harry Potter' And The Deathly Hallows Pt 1". [[MTV]].
4. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/6787259/The-world-premiere-of-Avatar-at-Odeon-Leicester-Square.html The world premiere of Avatar at Odeon Leicester Square] {{Webarchive. link. (5 August 2020 ''[[The Daily Telegraph). The Telegraph]]'' Retrieved 24 March 2011
5. [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/celebritynews/7320490/Alice-in-Wonderland-premiere-in-Leicester-Square-London.html Alice in Wonderland premiere in Leicester Square, London] {{Webarchive. link. (6 April 2019 ''The Telegraph'' Retrieved 24 March 2011)
6. [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5216256.stm Casino Royale is 60th royal film] ''[[BBC News]]'' Retrieved 24 March 2011
7. "A portrait of achievement". Sir Robert McAlpine.
8. page 247, Odeon Cinemas 1: Oscar Deutsch Entertains Our Nation, Allen Eyles, 2002, British Film Institute Publishing
9. Allen Eyles. ''Odeon Cinemas 2: From J. Arthur Rank to the Multiplex''. 2005: British Film Institute Publishing. page 40
10. Eyles, page 41.
11. "Odeon Tottenham Court Road". Cinema Treasures.
12. [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article3105734.ece "New Year Honours: full list".] {{Webarchive. link. (10 May 2011 ''[[The Times]]'', London, 29 December 2007.)
13. [http://www.westendextra.com/news/2010/jan/ex-leicester-square-odeon-cinema-boss-chris-hilton-awarded-mbe-honours-list Ex-Leicester Square Odeon cinema boss Chris Hilton awarded MBE in Honours List] {{Webarchive. link. (20 December 2016 ''West End Extra'' Retrieved 24 March 2011)
14. "Dolby Cinema".
15. "Screens 2 - 5 Odeon Leicester Square".
16. Robert Mitchell. (11 April 2017). "AMC to Undertake Major Refurbishment of London's Iconic Odeon Leicester Square".
17. Archer, John. (13 June 2018). "7 Dolby Cinema Sites To Open in the UK".
18. Har-Even, Benny. (24 February 2019). "Odeon And Dolby Cinema Join Forces To Take On IMAX".