Iconic 60-year-old cinema loved by film buffs and praised by Quentin Tarantino threatened with closure
Iconic 60-year-old cinema loved by film buffs and praised by Quentin Tarantino threatened with closure
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AN ICONIC 60-year-old cinema praised by Quentin Tarantino and adored by film buffs has been threatened with closure. Located in the heart of London's West End, The Prince Charles Cinema has warned that it is at risk of closure and faces the threat of redevelopment by its landlord.
![[The Prince Charles Cinema during the BFI London Film Festival.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/london-film-festival-prince-charles-967396040.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
The independent cinema was founded in 1962 and attracts more than 250,000 filmgoers every year. It believes its landlords are using "significant financial resources to intimidate" the cinema, which sees its lease expire in September 2025. Efforts to try and renew this lease at a market rate have been challenged by landlord Zedwell LSQ Ltd and its ultimate parent company Criterion Capital.
![[Leicester Square in London, showing the Prince Charles Cinema and surrounding street scene.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/day-time-street-view-several-967396048_cef835.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
Criterion, owned by billionaire developer Asif Aziz, owns a number of hotels and other properties in London's West End. The cinema said the landlord has also demanded a new clause which, if triggered, would leave the cinema homeless with just six months of notice.
It also claims that Criterion has continually rejected its requests for negotiation on the issue. A petition, signed by more than 83,000 people, says the landlord is seeking planning permission in order to redevelop the cinema's site. The Prince Charles Cinema's website has a section entitled #SaveThePCC that focuses on how the site is "one of the last remaining independent cinemas in central London.".
It also highlights how it receives "no public funding" and attracts over a quarter of a million customers a year "at a time when the industry is struggling.". The cinema added that it was "disappointed" both Zedwell LSQ Ltd and parent company Criterion Capital "demanded" the inclusion of a break clause.
