Christmas Film Quiz - Bah, Humbug!

Hello everyone!

We've been promising you a new film quiz for a while, and Christmas seemed like a good opportunity to finally deliver on our promise. But what theme should our Christmas quiz have? Well, we decided we'd celebrate the magic of Christmas as only Dickens could - with an Ebenezer Scrooge quiz!

Simply identify the actors below who have donned the nightcap and slippers to play the famous miser (or a character based on him) in each of the pictures below. Where it's an animated character, name the voice actor.

We'll reveal the answers in the New Year, to give you plenty of time to ponder (and maybe print them out and inflict them on your family at Christmas dinner!).

Enjoy!

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Merry Christmas, everyone! :)

The Mistletoe Bride - Short Film Project

Tenbury Wells is famous for its mistletoe - so much so that it has earnt itself the title of 'Mistletoe Capital of the World' according to the media. Every year, more of the white-berried plant is sold here in Tenbury than anywhere else in the country, so as you can probably guess, it's a bit of a big deal around these parts.

To celebrate the town's association with mistletoe, Tenbury celebrates each December with a Mistletoe Festival. This year, we were excited to be involved in the celebration which happened on December 1st. In the preceeding weeks, we worked with various local community groups to put together four short films based on the traditional tale of the Mistletoe Bride.

A good crowd turned up for the World Premiere of our films on Saturday 1st, including many of the cast. In case you missed the screening, here is one of the four films we showed on the day.

Enjoy!

October Half Term Fun at the Regal!

Families looking for entertainment this October Half Term need look no further than the Regal! A programme of films and fun workshops promises to offer something for everyone whatever the weather.

The film of the popular children’s ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ books is showing on Monday and Tuesday evening at 7.30pm, and on Wednesday, Dr Seuss’ ‘The Lorax’ takes over with showings at 1.30pm and 6.30pm. Both films have been box-office triumphs over the Summer and promise to be an excellent afternoon or evening's entertainment.

Before the afternoon showing of ‘The Lorax’ on Wednesday, we're excited to be bringing back CineMonkeys, the family games and craft workshop that proved so popular in August. Children can enjoy Lorax-themed fun from 12.30pm until the film starts in the Regal Community Centre for just £1 per child. We'll also be offering the chance to enroll as a CineMonkey, with free goodiebags and the chance to leave your children with us and go enjoy a quiet coffee in our cafe or a leisurely look around the town. Just make sure you're back by the time the film starts!

Oscar is super-excited to be back!

We're also excited to announce that local artist David Symons will be leading two animation workshops for us on Thursday for children aged 6 and up. Each two and a half hour session will guide participants through making their own micro animated film, using digital cameras and stop-motion animation. Sessions start at 10am and 1pm, cost £2.50 per child and include a DVD of all the films made in the day. Parents are invited to join in with under 12s at no extra charge. Pre-booking is essential, as we expect these sessions to be popular and places are limited. 

To book places at CineMonkeys or on one of the animation workshops, contact Sarah Fellows on hao@tenburytown.org.uk or 07980 692302. Film tickets can be purchased on the day, or in advance at the Regal’s box office in person or online at www.regaltenbury.co.uk.

Shiver Me Timbers - It's the Pirate Quiz Answers!

If you haven't had a look at our pirate quiz yet, then you should really do that before you read this post, as it's full of all the answers!

You can find it here:
http://regaltenburyhlf.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/avast-its-international-talk-like.html

For those of you who have done the quiz and are looking for the answers... here you go, me hearties!

1. Captain Jack Sparrow played by Johnny Depp, from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
2. Long John Silver as played by Tim Curry, from Muppet Treasure Island (1996)
3. Blackbeard as played by Peter Ustinov, from Blackbeard's Ghost (1968)
4. The Pirate Captain, voiced by Hugh Grant, from Pirates in an Adventure with Scientists (2012)
5. The Pirate King, as played by Kevin Kline, from Pirates of Penzance (1983)
6. Captain Hook, played by Dustin Hoffman, from Hook (1991)
7. The Dread Pirate Roberts, played by Cary Elwes, from the Princess Bride (1987)

A chest o' gold to yer if yer managed to be gettin' all of those correct!

And a large well done if you got more than half - some of those were definitely a little more obscure. But all excellent films, if you're looking for some piratical entertainment!

We'll be back with some more film guessing games in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, fair winds ter yer!

Mistletoe Short Films: Casting Call

We're getting involved in the Mistletoe Festival in Tenbury Wells this year in lots of ways! Perhaps most excitingly, we're going to be creating some short silent films on a mistletoe theme, which will be shown as part of the festival celebrations.

If you've ever wanted to be in a film then now is your chance! Everyone is welcome, and there is no cost to take part. Actors and actresses of any age are welcome and no prior acting experience is necessary. You'll only need to come along to one session, which will be about two hours long. Parts of all sizes are available, from leads to supporting extras - and of course, as it's a silent film you won't have to remember any lines!

We'll be arranging the filming dates in November to suit the people who get in touch, so if you're interested just send us an email to hao@tenburytown.org.uk and we'll get back to you soon.

Why not bring the whole family along? Then you can all ask each other for your autographs afterwards. Who knows, this could be the start of a wonderful career...

Avast! It's International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

As the title says, it is indeed International Talk Like a Pirate Day today. To celebrate (because why wouldn't you want to celebrate talking like a pirate all day?!) we've got a special film quiz for you, on characters most piratical!

Below are pirates, some famous and some not so much, from the silver screen.
Can you name the pirate, the film and the actor for each?

We'll post the answers up some time next week, to give you chance to have a think and pass the quiz around your friends.

May the wind be in yer sails, me hearties!

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If you'd like to submit your answers for marking, you can do so via twitter, facebook or here on the blog. Or you can email us if you don't want to give away your answers!

In focus: The Projection Room

We've been taking some pictures in the projection room this morning of our 35mm projector, and thought you might like to see some of them! We've just picked some of our favourites, inside and outside!

the front of the projector    ~     the projector from underneath

 

inside the projector

 

the path of the film, from tower towards projector

 

 

There are more photographs over on our Facebook page here if you're interested. Do show your appreciation for your favourites by pressing the like button! 

Oscar has something to say...

Our very own CineMonkey, Oscar, would like to say a massive thank you to all his new friends that he's made at CineMonkeys and MiniCineMonkeys this summer. He's had a fantastic time meeting everyone and making new friends and hopes you have too!

If you'd like to see him again, you'll be pleased to know that we are planning more CineMonkeys and MiniCineMonkeys sessions for the future. To help our planning, if you came to any of our sessions this summer we'd love your feedback on them. Just drop us a line via email, facebook or twitter and let us know what your favourite activities and films were, and why.

We've got some lovely CineMonkeys pin badges to reward you with, if you do!

Until then... Oscar says "see you soon!"

Is this film suitable for my child?

The question we get asked most about our films (after 'how much is it?') is usually "Is this film suitable for my child?" It's a very difficult question to answer, so we thought we'd post up some thoughts on it here.

As parents, you'll know better than anyone what might be likely to scare your child. It's different for everyone, and sometimes even a film that's rated U can cause some children to be frightened, or likewise, a fairly young child could sit supervised in a 12A and be completely fine. So from our point of view it's very hard to tell parents when they ask whether a film is likely to scare a child or not.

The BBFC ratings (U, PG, 12A, etc.) give you some guidance on the content of a film; a U film contains no material which is unsuitable for any age child, though of course that doesn't guarantee that they won't be frightened by it. You can find more information about BBFC ratings here: http://www.bbfc.co.uk/

For more information about the content of a film, the Internet Movie Database is a good place to start. They have a parent's guide for most films, compiled by parents and fans, which lists all of the things that children may find scary (or parents might find inappropriate) within the film. Here are the imdb parent's guides for the remaining CineMonkeys films in our August programme and our special free showing of Singin' in the Rain:

The Lion King (U)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (12A)
Singin' in the Rain (U)

You can find the link to the parent's guide about half way down on a film's listing page on imdb, if you'd like to look up any other films.

Lastly, our CineMonkeys films are designed to be family showings, so we won't mind at all if you need to take your child out of the cinema during the film for any reason. Our ushers will guide you back to your seat by torchlight if you want to come back in as well, of course.

If these thoughts don't help and you'd still like to talk it over with us, you can get in touch with us by emailing hao@tenburytown.org.uk. Otherwise, we hope that this has been useful, and that we'll see you at a film with us soon!

What a Glorious Feeling...

We're very excited to announce that we're going to be rounding off our launch season with a free showing of the very excellent film 'Singin' in the Rain'! We're even throwing in a short cartoon before the main feature, because we're nice like that.

The showing is on Saturday 25th August, doors open at 2.30pm and the show starts at 3pm. You'll need to pick up some tickets in advance but they are free! Just get in touch with us (email hao@tenburytown.org.uk or call 01584 810118) or drop into the Pump Rooms in Tenbury (or the Regal on a Tuesday 10am - 12pm or Wednesday 11.30am - 12.30pm) and we'll be happy to give you some tickets.

What a glorious feeling, we're happpppppy again!

And We're Open!

It's been a very busy week. Ten months of restoration work, hundreds of hours of volunteer time and huge support from all of you brought us to Saturday night at 6.30pm when the doors opened to some very stylishly dressed characters waiting at the bottom of the red carpet.

Our 1930s evening was a fantastic success, and we had so many lovely comments from you all about what fun you had. The Regal looked amazing all lit up for the ocassion.

Our full house danced the night away to the fantastic music of Naomi Payne's Hotsy-Totsy band, with some very impressive swing dancing going on, and we were delighted to see those who'd worked so hard on the Regal to be so pleased with their Oscar awards in our awards ceremony.

Jenni Ord from the Heritage Lottery Fund, accepting the award

for 'Best Picture' from Tenbury's Mayor Sue Corfield

On Sunday, over a hundred adults and children joined us to celebrate the Regal's 75th birthday. Everyone really got into the swing of things with the party games, with much cheering from the winners, and the rendition of 'Happy Birthday' was sung with gusto. Local baker Sue Field provided us with a delicious birthday cake which was admired in looks and taste by all.

Sarah Fellows, Heritage Access Officer, cutting the cake

Our film, Bugsy Malone, was much enjoyed by all, and we were very impressed by how many children and adults got dressed up for the ocassion! There were some excellent outfits.

Usher Stephen Butler welcomes the party-goers at the door

We also launched our CineMonkeys and MiniCineMonkeys this week, with Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone and a magical themed under 7s craft session. We'll bring you some photographs next week of craft-in-action.

So all in all, a busy and successful week! Guided tours begin next Thursday, so if you're interested in having a look around and learning about the restoration please get in touch to book your place.

Finally, we just want to thank everyone who has helped us get this far; from construction workers and contractors to our fabulous volunteers to all of you who have supported the project.

We'll be continuing to bring you information about the cinema's history for some time here on the blog and over on our twitter and facebook pages, so we hope you'll keep following us.

See you at the cinema soon!

Memories of the Projection Room

A local resident who used to work in the Regal as a projectionist brought this fantastic picture in to us and we wanted to share it with you.

It's a photograph of the projection room at the Regal in its early years. The two projectors in the picture are the original Kalee 11s which were in place at the cinema's opening in July 1937.

Some of those original features are still in the projection room today, most notably the fire shutters on the far wall. We've even still got one of those tall chairs, especially tall so that the projectionist could see down into the auditorium through the high portal you can see next to where the projectionist is standing in the photograph.

We've been recording the memories of people who have worked in and visited the Regal over the years. These audio recordings will be available on our interactive website soon at www.regaltenbury.org.uk and we're also in the process of transcribing some of them as well. A few of the people we've interviewed so far have been those who used to work as projectionists, and we thought this blog post would be a great place to share some of those little snippets about life in the projection room.

Once the films arrived, usually Monday or Tuesday, you'd go down to the cinema, and you had to take the films out of the transport cans and put them onto the spools, the projection spools, and what you were doing was to check them over to make sure that they were alright. Because the distributor would send a running sheet down with the films telling you that they'd checked them and they were all satisfactory... but you never took their word for it.

- David Griffiths

The projectors in the photograph were 'carbon arc' projectors, which meant that instead of having a bulb in them to generator light as more modern projectors do, they actually burnt carbon inside them which gave off a bright light. This is one of the reasons that projection was such a dangerous occupation - that, and the very flammable nitrate film that was used, which has been known to spontaneously combust from only the friction of moving through the projector!

Tom Dallow tells us a little about the carbon arc projectors that he worked with at the Regal;

The thing with carbons... if you let them burn too far apart, they'd go out. But if they burn too close together, the picture would go brown! So, then there used to be some fun and games if you hadn't put enough carbon in there because you'd got to get your hands in the archouse, open it up, tap them up a little bit more with something so that it'd last... they've been out many a night.

- Tom Dallow

We hope you've enjoyed this brief journey into the projection room of years gone by! We'll share some more memories of the Regal over the summer. If you've got any photographs of the Regal that we could feature here, please do let us know!

Mystery Film 32

A well-a well-a well-a-congratulations to Lainey on Facebook and Steve on Twitter for knowing last week's film was of course Grease!

Danny, the T-bird lead of the film, was famously played by John Travolta opposite Olivia Newton-John as Sandy. An earlier choice for the role was Henry Winkler, who played the Fonz in Happy Days. Winkler turned the role down though, for fear of being typecast. Scenes within the film contain blurred-out images of Coca-Cola logos, as the film's producer had made a product placement deal with Pepsi during filming and the scenes were deemed to expensive to re-shoot.

What do you make of this week's film?

Answers by the usual form; facebook, twitter or blog!

It's all about CineMonkeys!

You've probably already heard about CineMonkeys, our family film club, featuring an hour of things to make and do before a classic family film, but just in case you haven't... here's the low-down for you!

We're very pleased with our new logo and hope you like it too - it was designed by Katy from Lacon Childe School as part of a partnership project between the school and the cinema. We love the smiling monkey - look out for him at our summer events!

So, what's on? Well, we've got four great family films for you in August, each with an hour of themed craft and games beforehand;

Wednesday August 1st - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Wednesday August 8th - Happy Feet
Wednesday August 15th - The Lion King
Wednesday August 22nd - Pirates of the Caribbean

Tickets are £6 for adults and £4 for children. Some craft activities may incur an additional £1 charge.

Film fans of all ages are welcome, and you don't have to come to the craft and games session to see the film. During August, we're also showing a classic Tom and Jerry cartoon before the main feature, included in your film admission ticket. Craft sessions start at 11.30am, and the cartoon begins at 12.30pm, followed immediately by the film.

Win your way in!

We're so excited about CineMonkeys that we're giving away a family ticket (for up to five people) to each one of our CineMonkeys films. To enter the competition, just design us a poster for the film you'd like to come and see for free out of the four we're showing this August. We'll judge each week on the Monday before the film and let you know that day if you've won. There will be some prizes for highly commended entries too, so get designing!

CineMonkeys is aimed at families with children aged 7 - 12, though children of any age are very welcome. We're also running additional sessions on Tuesdays between 10am and noon for MiniCineMonkeys who are under 7, with two hours of craft and games and a short cartoon showing at 11.30am in the auditorium. MiniCineMonkeys sessions are completely free, and will feature similar craft activities and games to the following day's CineMonkeys session, but with the focus on our younger film fans.

If you've got questions about any of the CineMonkeys sessions, or if you'd like to let us know that you're coming, you can email us on hao@tenburytown.org.uk. Booking for the pre-film sessions isn't essential, but it is preferred. You can buy tickets for the films in advance or pre-order them and pay on the day - contact the Pump Rooms in Tenbury on 01584 810118 or email us.

Mystery Film 31

Congratulations to Stephen on facebook who correctly identified last week's film as Hugo.

Based on Brian Selznick's novel 'The Invention of Hugo Cabret', Hugo is a film about a young boy who lives in a train station in Paris where he tends to the clocks and tries to solve a mystery about a broken automaton, his last and most precious possession from his now-dead father. Along the way, he starts an adventure to uncover past secrets about a famous early film-maker and pioneer of special effects, Georges Méliès.

What do you make of this week's film?

Guesses the usual ways please; comments here on the blog, guesses on twitter or facebook.

Happy guessing!

Mystery Film 30

Congratulations to Steve on twitter and David on facebook who correctly indentified last week's film as the Dreamwork's animation film Shrek.

Featuring the unlikely hero, the ogre Shrek, the film was a family favourite when it was released back in 2001. Eleven years and four films later, the popularity of the unconvential protagonist still continues, with a Tony Award winning musical and spin-off films and shorts speaking to the franchise's success. Mike Myers, who voices Shrek, recorded all the dialogue for the film twice; after completing the entire script he asked to re-record it in a Scottish accent. The studio liked the change so much that they modified $4million worth of animation to accomodate the re-recording.

What do you make of this week's film?

Answers in the usual form; on the blog, on facebook or twitter. Happy guessing!

Mystery Film 29

Congratulations to Steve on the blog who spotted that last week's film was the 1971 film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!

Not to be confused, of course, with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which was a 2005 remake of Roald Dahl's classic story, this time starring Johnny Depp rather than Gene Wilder as the eccentric chocolate maker, Willy Wonka. There have been many adaptions of the story over the years for the stage as well; an opera called 'Golden Ticket', many stage plays and a West End musical based on the story is due to have its premiere in 2013.

What do you make of this week's film?

Answers in the usual ways please; blog, facebook or twitter. Happy guessing!

Mystery Film 28

Congratulations to Stephen on twitter who correctly spotted last week's film princess, Giselle, from Disney's Enchanted, poking up out of a New York storm drain.

Enchanted is the story of an animated Disney Princess who finds herself in the real world by means of an evil Queen and a magical well. As well as starring Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey in the lead roles, the film also features cameo parts for actresses who have played major roles in other Disney films, including the voices of Belle from Beauty and the Beast, Ariel from the Little Mermaid, Pocahontas, Cinderella and Mary Poppins.

Here's this week's film; what do you make of it?

Guesses in the usual way, please; on facebook, twitter or the blog.

Mystery Film 27

Congratulations to those who spotted last week's animal film, the animated Dreamwork's film Madagascar.

The 2005 animated comedy Madagascar is the first in a series of films about animals which escape from New York zoo and end up in 'the wild', a place they do not know how to cope with as they've spent all their lives so far being pampered in the zoo. The third film, Escape from Europe, has just been released in cinemas. The films star some famous voice talents, including David Schwimmer (Friends), Ben Stiller (Night at the Museum) and Sacha Baron Cohen (Ali G/Borat).

Can you tell what this week's mystery film is?

Good luck! Answers via the blog, facebook or twitter as usual.

It's a sign...

If you live in Tenbury, you'll have seen the arrival of the new REGAL sign yesterday afternoon. We're rather excited about it, and think it looks pretty fabulous!

In case you're not a Tenbury native, we've got a couple of photos here for you, so you can see what everyone in town can see.

Firstly, this is the cinema without the sign. You can just see it leaning against the building behind the bus stop - it had just arrived at this point.

Next, the sign wrapped in bubblewrap on the floor, ready to be mounted.

And finally, the cinema with new sign attached!

Expect more photos of this later when the rain stops... We're rather excited about having our new sign in place, in case you couldn't tell!

So, what do you think of our new front? It's almost finished... a few more lights to be attached, but nearly there! We can't wait to take some photos in the dark with them all switched on...

Mystery Film 26

Congratulations to those who recognised last week's film as The Adventures of Robin Hood with Errol Flynn. Half marks to those who recognised the people's outlaw but guessed at the wrong film; there have certainly been plenty of films with Robin Hood as the title character!

Filmed mostly on location in California, this 1938 classic film probably paints a sunnier picture of medieval England than was probable. Despite that, its swashbuckling take on the English legend have made it a popular family favourite across the years. Archery is obviously a staple of any Robin Hood story, and this was also true of Adventures. To simulate the people who were shot by archers in the film, extras and stuntmen were paid $150 per arrow to be shot at whilst wearing special padded suits.

Do you recognise this week's film?

Answers in the usual way; comments here on the blog, on facebook or via twitter.

Good luck! 

Re-opening Announcements

We're very excited to announce that details of all of our opening events are now available right here on the blog, in our opening events tab. You can find that at the top of the page, or just click here: http://regaltenburyhlf.blogspot.co.uk/p/opening-events.html

If you've got any questions about any of the opening events, please get in touch and we'll be happy to answer them.

Otherwise, we hope to see you in the summer!

Mystery Film 25

Congratulations to David and Stephen on Facebook who knew that last week's film was Disney's Mulan.

Based on the chinese legend of Hua Mulan, a woman who took her aged father's place in the chinese army and fought successfully for many years, the Disney film features the voice talent of Eddie Murphy as the small but firey dragon, Mushu. Jackie Chan provides his voice for the character of Li Shang (the son of the Chinese General) in the chinese dub of the film, as well as singing one of the songs "I'll Make a Man Out of You" in a music video which features as an extra on the DVD release. George Takei, of Star Trek fame, also has a small speaking role in the film as one of Mulan's ancestors.

What do you think this week's film might be?

You can submit your answers via facebook, twitter, or as comments right here on the blog.

Enjoy!

Mystery Film 24

Apparently some of you got a sinking feeling when you saw last week's picture... congratulations to those of you who knew that meant last week's film was the watery classic, Titantic. Rounds of applause go to Stephen on facebook.

Described as "an epic romantic disaster film" James Cameron's Titantic smashed through box office records like the iceberg smashed through the ill-fated ocean liner's hull. It was the highest grossing film of all time until its record was beaten by Cameron's own film, Avatar, in 2010. The footage at the opening of the film, of the Titantic at the bottom of the ocean, was shot by on an expedition funded by Cameron in 1995, before he pitched the idea of the film to 20th Century Fox, the studio behind Titantic.

Here's this week's film. What do you make of it?

Submit your answers in the usual fashion; via facebook, twitter or blog.

Happy guessing!

Mystery Film 23

Last week's film proved a challenge for some, but I was very impressed with those of who you did recognise it - it was a particularly difficult image. Congratulations to Stephen on the blog and Katie and Zena on facebook who correctly spotted it was Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End.

At World's End is the third in the series of Pirates of the Caribbean films, based on the popular theme park rides at various Walt Disney theme parks. Currently, there are four films in the series, with another two supposedly planned for back-to-back production (which is how the second and third films were shot).
Here's this week's film, a little easier I hope; what do you make of it?

Answers in the usual way please; blog comments, twitter or facebook.

Happy guessing!

Bringing a little cinema to you - our 8mm projector

We've had a bit of interest about that 8mm projector that we mentioned in our talks and presentations post last week, so we thought we'd tell you a little more about it.

You may remember a time when VHS video tapes were the method of watching films at home, in the days before DVDs. In the days before that, the home projector ruled the territory of at-home film-watching. There were various types of projectors that you could buy, which took different sizes and types of film.

By far the most common home film projectors showed a type of film called Super 8. This was one of a few different types of 8mm film (that's film which is 8mm wide - film in cinemas is usually 35mm, or 35mm wide). Our projector is one of those; it'll also show Single 8 film too, another type of 8mm film that preceded Super 8.

Many home films were black and white and silent, however some would be in colour and have sound. The film you can see projecting here, which is a celebration of 50 years of Mickey Mouse (recognise the Sorceror's Apprentice?) is in colour with sound.

We've collected a few titles that we can show to demonstrate how these home projectors worked to school and educational groups. They're a mixture of sound, silent, black and white and colour. These include cartoon favourites such as Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh and the Flintstones, as well as a short film of one of Laurel and Hardy's adventures.

Feature-length films were impractical to show on small projectors like these and would have been very expensive, so instead film manufacturers would sell short clips of their feature films on 8mm film. We've collected examples from Disney's Pinocchio and Bambi.

If you're interested in having us demonstrate the 8mm projector for your group, let us know! We're happy to include a short talk about the Regal, film and projectors, the history of British cinemas or any combination thereof to give the projector some context. Some showings can even be provided for free, depending on the titles you wish to view, what type of group you are and how far away from us you're located.

For details of the films we can show, the types of groups we can show them to, distances we'll travel, dates we're free, costs involved and so on, get in touch. We're happy to chat about your requirements and see what we can do for you.

Talks and presentations: bringing the Regal to you

As well as keeping you in touch with the Regal's history and restoration online, the HLF project has also allowed for the creation of some talks and presentations which our staff and volunteers can bring out to you. If you're a community group, school, or similar then we'll be pleased to come along to your meetings and deliver a talk about the Regal and/or the restoration project.

Talks last approximately 45min for either Regal history or Regal restoration, or we can just about squeeze the highlights of both into an hour (if we talk really fast!). We'll provide a laptop and a projector for the presentation, we just ask that you make sure there's a screen or blank white wall to project onto, and a couple of plug sockets somewhere nearby (cups of tea are very much appreciated also!). We can adapt our talks for groups of any age, ability or prior knowledge, just let us know the requirements of your group and we'll do what we can.

We're also in the process of developing some digital resources for educational groups which will be launching in September 2012, as well as special activity sessions and projects about film, cinema and the Regal. We even have an 8mm projector and some short films, silent and sound, which we can demonstrate for your group. Ever wanted to see Mickey Mouse or Winnie the Pooh on Super 8 film? Now's your chance!

If you're interested in having us come and chat to you, even if it's something a bit different to the talks described above, just get in touch by email letting us know what you need and we'll do what we can to help you out.

We're looking forward to hearing from you soon!

Mystery Film 22

Congratulations to Zena and Richard on Facebook, who knew last week's mystery film was of course the Disney classic 'The Lion King'. Featuring award-winning score by Hans Zimmer with songs from Elton John and Tim Rice and now a West End and Broadway musical, The Lion King is consistently voted one of the world'd favourite Disney films of all time. the first Disney film to be written as an original story rather than being heavily based on one inspirational work, it is the highest-grossing hand-drawn film to date from any studio.

 

So, what do you make of this week's mystery film?

 

Answers in the usual forms please; on the blog here, on facebook or on twitter.

Happy guessing!

Restoration: Return of the Seats!

As promised, we popped into the Regal again this week to take some more photographs now that the seats are back in the auditorium. Obviously we're a little biased, but we really think it's looking fabulous in there now.

Not wanting to give away too much, here's a couple of photographs from inside the auditorium.

We also promised you some photographs of the front of the building, and we wouldn't want to renage on that promise so here you go:

On both photos you can see the fabulous new detailing on the upper two floors of the cinema. You'll also be able to spot the tube in the grooves on the columns; this is the start of the neon lighting going in.

We hope you've enjoyed this sneak peak... look for more coming soon as more areas of the cinema are completed! 

Mystery film: 21

Congratulations to all our correct guessers from last week! As Stephen, Katya and David on Facebook knew, the film was, of course, Mary Poppins.

One of the most classic live-action Disney films, Mary Poppins is equally famous for Julie Andrew's 'practically perfect' portrayal of the musical nanny, the film's wonderful music and Dick Van Dyke's terrible cockney accent. The film is now a Broadway and West End musical.

Here's this week's film! Can you tell what it is?

Answers in the usual method please; on the facebook page, twitter or here in the blog comments.

Enjoy!