The Ultimate Picture Palace

This is what cinema is all about. Rough round the edges, and a heart of cinematic gold.

One of the oldest working cinemas in Britain, the UPP has a bit of history too. It opened in 1911, but shortly after its owner went to fight in World War and it became a furniture warehouse.

When radio presenter Bill Heine asked his bank manager for a loan to restore it, he was told his plan was "not the ultimate in bad ideas - but the penultimate". Undaunted, it reopened in 1971 - as the 'Penultimate Picture Palace'.

When it closed again in the 1990s it even became a squat for a while - but in 1997 it rose again to its former glory as a picturehouse: this time The Ultimate Picture Palace.