Originally posted by Cassius_Smoke
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If they get voted in again then the entire country only has themselves to blame for this continuing s**t show, and deserve everything thats going to follow. -
This will get Putin's nerves riled
What could go wrong?Comment
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I wonder if my GP could service my boiler too?Comment
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They would have to be working to do any work anyway.Originally posted by Neon Ignition View PostComment
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Stanley Johnson blames his sons own Government for allowing tons of raw sewage to be dumped in UK waterways
Liz Truss - live: Sunak criticises foreign secretary’ economic plan as she tries to ‘avoid scrutiny’ (msn.com)
And Mogg really helps Truss' electoral chances by doubling down the stance that UK workers are lazy bumsComment
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Yeah; we didn't go see Top Gun Maverick because I was a bit skint and it was going to cost nearly £30 for regular booked seats. Going to the cinema used to be a cheap night out.Originally posted by Cassius_Smoke View PostComment
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Rees-Mogg wouldn’t know ‘work’ if it tickled his prostate and caused him to spaff. He’s a career grifter, a liar and a hypocrite. Mr Brexit with his offshore havens.
He’s the kernt’s kernt.Comment
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Business rates on your average cineworld building is probably 100k alone, if not more as they are big sites. Then rent on top as they don’t own any of those buildings. Wage’s, electrics (now a serious problem for any business).Originally posted by Asura View Post
£15 a ticket is cheap really.Comment
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As a customer, I don't judge the value of something by the running costs of the business, though. Sounding like my dad here but the main thing for me is that it wasn't that long ago that if we went to the cinema, we'd pay ~£30 for two tickets, two drinks and popcorn. Now it's closer to £50. With everything else getting more expensive post-pandemic, it's just a luxury I can't afford, and we used to love going to the cinema.Originally posted by fishbowlhead View Post
I appreciate that the cinema doesn't make money on tickets and only really makes money on concessions, but maybe that's the part of the system that needs to break down so it can get fixed.Comment
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Everything has gone up dramatically, they need to charge more just to stand still let alone move forward. I don’t think you really appreciate just how much it cost’s to simply run on the spot these days, let alone earn enough profits to move forward, invest, increase wages.Comment
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Cineworld is an awful place. We used to have a scruffy old Art Deco era cinema with cheap prices and it folded within about 2-3 years of Cineworld opening even though it charged more than double. I think it was about £3 for the old place, £8 for Cineworld. And it went up when the old place closed, I think they'd got up to something like £13 before the pandemic hit. And it was pretty dirty and rubbish really, you'd get to the screen and there'd be popcorn all over the floor. And you felt like a criminal the entire time you were there, bag searches and wanting to look in coat pockets and all sorts - it was to force you to pay absolutely outrageous prices for snacks. Worse than motorway services. I wasn't having any of that though, fond memories of watching The Fifth Element whilst enjoying some stuff I smuggled in from the newsagents round the corner - packet of Scampi and Lemon NikNaks stashed in the front of my boxers, 500ml bottle of Coke under my left armpit, a pair of Curly Wurlys stood vertical in my socks.
Anyway I love films, but it just made going to the cinema so expensive that I just gave up and started saving up for my own home cinema setup. Did some temporary warehouse work for a few months between education and saved up for (what was at the time) a pretty good home cinema setup. Got a Toshiba 43" rear projection set from the Makro super sale, Toshiba DVD player chipped for region-free and ex-display Panasonic receiver from Richer Sounds, some separates speakers from various sales for surround sound. I do watch a lot of stuff so I probably did save in the long run, but even if not it felt better to not give them money.
I've only started going to the cinema again last year or so, there's a Reel Cinemas opened up in the shopping centre and to be honest I completely prefer what they're doing. Compared to Cineworld all the screens are very modestly sized (I think the biggest screen is probably only 50 seats), but the prices are fairer at £4.50 a pop (£3.50 if early), they don't try to screw you on the food and drink, it's always clean, the staff are friendly. I do feel like I want to support it to exist. The important thing I think is that the prices are so low that you can take a gamble on a film that might turn out to be a stinker without feeling too sore about it. I think that is the key - there must be so many people avoiding seeing anything that they're not guaranteed to love. The cinema should be something you can go to every month or two when you see something you fancy, not just a once a year experience for a big obvious "safe" blockbuster.Comment
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That's the issue Cineworld has found itself in, the business model works fine which is why its rivals are doing alright, they massively overborrowed.
Had a check and it was the case that pre-pandemic they borrowed billions to buy out Regal and others to rapidly expand and try to challenge Odeon. The pandemic basically came along and decimated their earnings and now their debts are coming due. The operating costs are likely fine, they just can't offset the billions of debt they put themselves through. High chance Odeon will be an accidental monopoly soon.Comment
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I live in Ealing which, on account of the studios, the 'Ealing Comedies' legacy and all, is meant to have this deep-rooted tie to British cinema. We've not actually had anywhere to watch films for 10+ years though, which in itself is ridiculous enough, but the ongoing saga of converting the site of the last one back into a fresh, new, modern cinema has been equally ridiculous.
The site had already been left empty for a long time before one developer bought up the land and spent more years twiddling their thumbs, eventually being forced by the council to sell it on again to someone who'd actually do something with it. The newest set of plans following this saw not only a large cinema, but a total re-development of the area: some new flats, a public square, leisure facilities, restaurants, bars etc. There have been more delays than I could care to recall, running into yet more years, but eventually things have started coming together. With nearly all of this now complete, what's the one part of it that's notably still in limbo? You guessed it - I can now go axe throwing, but can I watch a film? Given that it's meant to be a Picturehouse, this news that Cineworld is in crisis does not seem like great news either for the cinema or for everything else that'd planned to thrive in its orbit.
Also thrown into the mix is that in July, a smaller, independent multi-function space opened up with a three screen cinema. For my money it has totally stolen their thunder: able to make the bold claim that it's the area's first cinema in 14 years, and also operates as a broader, community-focused venue. Tickets are reasonably priced - certainly much cheaper than any Picturehouse I've ever seen - and there's a really great membership scheme too. I've been once so far for an NT Live thing, and I came away very impressed with everything about it, and also that it'd packed the place out.
To take off the 'my local area' lens for a second and look at it in a general sense though - that AMC are bouncing back and that Cineworld aren't is not a good sign for them. You lose that right to use the pandemic as a bogeyman, and your costs start getting examined a bit more closely, and chances are, things unravel from there.Comment
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I absolutely don'tOriginally posted by fishbowlhead View Post
but as I said, I don't feel I need to understand the inner workings of a business to express whether or not I think their product feels expensive.
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