The multiplex cinema is now common throughout Britain, but do you know when and where the first one opened?
Does the hint that it's a very old shape in a very new town help?
You
may very well still have no idea, but if you happen to live in Milton
Keynes then you are probably aware of it for two reasons. First, it's an
interesting bit of local history. Second, it's been in the news in
recent years because the building which housed the multiplex -
ziggurat-shaped entertainment complex The Point - is under threat of demolition.
The
first multiplex had been opened in the United States in the 1960s by
AMC (American Multi Cinema), and soon spawned a number of imitators.
This successful innovation took a while to cross the Atlantic to
Britain, and it wasn't until the start of the 1980s that plans were made
to build a multiplex here. The opportunity came when Milton Keynes'
Development Corporation sought proposals for an entertainment complex,
and AMC entered into a joint project with Bass Leisure. In 1984,
construction began and the cinema opened on 25 November 1985.
It
was a brave move, because cinema attendances had fallen badly as
televisions and video recorders encouraged people to stay home instead. A
vicious circle was forming: major chains weren't investing in their
cinemas because audiences were dropping; dated technology and
surroundings put audiences off, so they fell further; and so on. The
Point's cinemas, by contrast, exceeded their targets in the first year:
the multiplex would be embraced as a solution to the industry's woes.
Of
course, it hasn't been the magic cure that it perhaps first appeared -
in fact, ironically, the multiplex has become part of the problem. Home
entertainment technology has evolved further: widescreen TVs and
internet streaming make staying home ever more of a match for the
smaller screens and auditoria of the multiplex. Some cinemas have
returned to the traditional, large cinema hall to offer a distinct
experience and sense of occasion, while modern multiplexes - including a
Milton Keynes competitor - are bigger and more modern than this
pioneer. Independents combine interesting films and comfortable
surroundings with more tempting alternatives to the usual, overpriced
snacks. That brave and distinctive pioneer The Point, meanwhile, has
lost its cinema and the building's days seem to be numbered. Appeals to
its historical significance have not been enough to save it.
