People in Oxford, Oxfordshire, have launched a public campaign this month to protect the Ultimate Picture Palace. The community-owned cinema, located on Jeune Street just off Cowley Road, is facing uncertainty due to a dispute over its lease with its landlord, Oriel College.
Campaigners claim the Grade II listed building is situated within the proposed footprint of the college’s “Fifth Quad” development project. Supporters fear the project, intended for graduate student housing, could eventually replace the site, which has been an active cinema since 1911 and is one of the oldest in the country.
The venue requires urgent investment to improve its sound quality, energy efficiency, and accessibility for people with disabilities. However, campaigners say Oriel College has not yet agreed to a long-term lease extension that would allow these vital renovations to proceed.
A public petition on Change.org has already gained thousands of signatures. The effort has received high-profile backing from Oscar-nominated producer Dame Pippa Harris and local MP Dame Anneliese Dodds.
Oriel College has stated it is currently in dialogue with the cinema’s management team regarding the building’s future. The cinema was saved from closure in 2022 when it was purchased by more than 1,200 members of the local community to ensure it remained a neighborhood asset.
