The Curzon Mayfair. Closing in Early 2026

This original Curzon Cinema has been the flagship of Curzon Cinemas for 91 years. It first opened in 1934 at the junction of Curzon Street and Hertford Street, to be replaced by the current building, which was completed in 1966. The Curzon Mayfair, a Modernist gem of architecture and design, remains one of the most loved London cinemas. It boasts key aspects of late 20th Century architectural style. Yet it looks brand new. Quite unlike anything you’ll see anywhere in the world.

Sadly, however, the multi-millionaire freeholder-landlord clearly knows “the price of everything, but the value of nothing”.

The small upstairs cinema is like a set from a photoshoot in a 1960s edition of Studio International. White glowing spheres serve as table lamps amid a vermillion red seated interior. The main cinema is a paean to 1960s Modernity. It should’ve been ‘Grade 1’ listed by Historic England, instead of being awarded a mere ‘Grade 2’. Why wasn’t it preserved for the nation and international tourism? The Curzon Mayfair should’ve been bought for the nation and merged with The Design Museum and Curzon Cinemas. Instead, it is to close and be demolished. This is happening despite its being designated as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) by Westminster City Council back in August 2022 – a status that will remain in place until August 2027.

Despite Curzon’s desire to invest in the venue, and its recent withdrawal of litigation, the landlord will now operate the site, leading to Curzon’s planned exit in January 2026. All after a long and costly legal battle between Curzon Cinemas and the developers, Fantasio. As a consequence, we’ll lose one of London’s last remaining truly ‘epic’ cinema screens.

As former Guardian features writer and editor-founder of OnLondon.com Dave Hill says, “The operators and supporters of the famous London picturehouse have one view of the way forward for this cultural landmark, while the landlord has a rather different one!” Fantasio is to undertake redevelopment plans for this historic cinema with an attached new restaurant. The newly rebuilt auditorium will be transformed into a modern venue for the late 2020s — a chic dining and entertainment hub. Fantasio plans to spend £15 million on the new cinema at this address, amid their wider redevelopment plans. For Curzon this wasn’t a viable business proposition. Certainly not without charging exorbitant ticket prices or turning the premises into Mayfair’s latest members-only club for the super-rich. Clearly this huge challenge was way beyond Curzon’s 2026 remit and their current financial means.

The landlord apparently plans to restore some of the original Art Deco features while implementing “modern design, luxury seating, improved sound, and brand new audio-visual technology”. Whatever that means. It’d be hard to improve upon what is already the best sound-and-vision experience currently available in the metropolis.

Meanwhile, the demolition is alleged to begin in late January 2026.

The Odeon Camden Parkway. Closing in Early 2026

Camden’s Odeon Cinema is set to close next year, with plans for student housing proposed for this Parkway site. The cinema has been part of the high street scene since 1937 and became a five-screen Odeon multiplex in 1997. Odeon Cinemas say that they are “working to support staff”, but, in truth, Odeon’s current owners are living up to the moniker of being ‘J. Arthurs’. They’ve been poor curators of J. Arthur Rank’s Odeon legacy. Parkway marks a long line of continuing Odeon closures.

This multiplex absorbed the former Camden Parkway Cinema and a part of the former Camden Plaza, whose cinema entrance was in Camden High Street until the early 1980s – now shops.

The Genesis Cinema. Under Threat of Demolition?

The Genesis, situated at 93–95 Mile End Road, is described by their team as “a family run, independent cinema in London’s East End”. A conversion into five screens, it remains one of London’s last surviving independent cinemas. They have friendly staff, a vibrant bar, and a tasty kitchen, all on offer for private hire. The venue includes two big cinema screens and two smaller “Studio” screens for a more intimate viewing experience, plus one very large screen in the biggest cinema.

A local campaigner says that “The Genesis is now threatened with demolition to make way for a seven-storey tower block for student accommodation. If this is allowed to happen, this would remove an important link to our city’s cultural heritage and replace it with an imposing development, which makes a mockery of the local environment, the Stepney Green Conservation Area, and the efforts towards retaining local history.”

Campaigners describe The Genesis Cinema as “a landmark, not only for Stepney, but for London. It’s part of our cultural fabric with a history on the site dating back to 1848”. Before the site became The Genesis, the building was originally a music hall called The Eagle Public House. After a fire in 1884 the replacement, called the Paragon Theatre of Varieties, was initially hosted by Charlie Chaplin. After that it became The Mile End Empire Cinema in 1912. The current cinema building was designed in 1936 by Frank Matcham.

In the 1950s, drummer Kenney Jones of The Small Faces, The Faces, and The Who went to The Genesis Cinema as a small boy for birthday treats. He remembers it with a considerable amount of affection.

A spokesperson for the Planning Office at Tower Hamlets Council recently said that “the cinema will be retained within the development”, but they did not elaborate nor clarify whether it would be demolished and rebuilt. Campaigners have suggested that concerned citizens should object to these developments via the Tower Hamlets Planning Department website or by sending an email to development.control@towerhamlets.gov.uk citing the planning application reference PA/25/00516 in order to protect this popular community landmark.

The Prince Charles Cinema, 7 Leicester Place. Under Threat of Closure

The Prince Charles Cinema was opened in 1962 as a live theatre before becoming a cinema in the mid-sixties. It is a unique repertory cinema with two screens and unrivalled programming, which remains second to none. Every single show is between two-thirds full or filled to capacity seven days a week. It remains London’s most popular cinema. So why close it?

The Prince Charles Cinema faced the potential threat of closure by its freeholder-landlord, Zedwell LSQ Ltd, and their parent company Criterion Capital, owned by Asif Aziz, who sought to include a redevelopment break clause within a new lease when the current one expires in September 2025.

The PCC has been listed since May 2025 as an Asset of Community Value (ACV), giving the cinema some additional protections. The PCC pursued a new lease through court action — a legally mandated process. Negotiations are still ongoing. The PCC are legally entitled to a new lease under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. The cinema has applied to the law courts for a new lease without the cited break clause. A short-term break clause would mean their tenancy could be terminated. Why, you might ask? This would almost certainly render the PCC without any protection. Meaning as a new short-term tenant PCC could be evicted as per the rules within the Landlord and Tenant Act. Hence the campaign and the current court battle.

A Save The Prince Charles Cinema petition has garnered one of the largest numbers of signatures ever gathered for the protection of a UK cinema, currently standing at 165,000. Should you wish to sign up to this worthy cause, you can do so here.

The Prince Charles Cinema was listed in Eye On London’s Top Ten London Cinemas.

For more independent coverage of London’s arts, heritage, and cultural landmarks, follow EyeOnLondon. We’d love to hear your views in the comments.

[Image Credit | Archer Humphryes]

Follow us on:

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest videos and updates!

We value your thoughts! Share your feedback and help us make EyeOnLondon even better!