Prince Charles Cinema eyes second London site amid fight for its original home
It’s been a turbulent year so far for the Prince Charles Cinema (PCC) but the beloved Leicester Square venue may finally have something to celebrate: a potential second site in Stratford.
Earlier this year, landlords Zedwell LSQ Ltd and parent company Criterion Capital put the cinema’s future in jeopardy by pushing for a rent hike and a new break clause in the lease. If triggered, that clause could have forced PCC to close with just six months’ notice – a move the cinema feared signalled plans to redevelop the site. The threat prompted a petition to secure its future, which has now gathered more than 165,000 signatures.
However, in May Westminster Council boosted hopes for the cinema’s survival by granting it Asset of Community Value status. This designation protects PCC if the building goes up for sale, specifically with a six-month moratorium on the sale to raise the funds to bid for its purchase – similar to the measures that saved Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club.
“Given what’s happened this year, I understand how it could look like we’re trying to shift operations but that’s not what’s happening,” PCC’s Head of Programming, Paul Vickery told The Guardian.
Instead, Vickery sees Stratford, an area transformed by over a decade of regeneration, as an ideal location for a new branch.
“Stratford has always been a hub,” he adds. “There are plenty of students and loads of new-build properties. But it also feels like it’s still trying to find its feet and figure out what it is.”
If it goes ahead, the proposed Prince Charles Cinema East would join a growing cluster of cultural institutions in East London, including Soho Theatre Walthamstow, Sadler’s Wells East and the V&A East Storehouse.
The original petition is still welcoming signatures, which at the time of writing has garnered 165,275 – making PCC just sort of it’s total goal of 200,000.
