The rich cultural landscape of Manchester means that the city has been home to number of notable cinemas and entertainment complexes over the years.
But perhaps none are more iconic to our generation than the Showcase Cinema.
The Showcase Cinema – which occupied the site of the famous Belle Vue entertainment complex – was one of the first multi-screen venues to open up in Manchester, bringing blockbuster flicks, quick queues, and car parks to fit a 1,000 cars along with it.
It was unlike anything the area had ever seen before when it first opened back in 1989.
The hustle and bustle of excitable film fans filled the foyer, hallways, and 14 screens of this beloved Hyde Road hangout right up until the world ground to a halt and it was forced to temporarily close its doors due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in March of last year.
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The cinema’s owners had grand plans to reopen the 13-acre site to the public once restrictions were lifted, but sadly none of that came to reality.
It was announced in October 2020 that the closure of the Showcase Cinema would be permanent.
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The effects of ongoing restrictions were seen to be slowly crushing the unrivalled collective cinema experience right across the UK, and Belle Vue’s community hub became one of the latest fatalities.
While you unfortunately won’t be able to grab tickets to see the newest James Bond or Marvel movie within the cinema’s four walls in the future, the building that thousands have stepped foot in over its 30-year life still remains intact on the site it’s always stood.
The only difference is, it looks a little different than you might remember.
A series of photos captured by local urban explorer Exploring with Jake – known to his 47K+ followers for “exploring abandoned buildings and old work places in the UK” – show the cinema’s well-known frontage appearing rather run-down, and the inside looking like a shell of its former self.
It’s a pretty eerie sight for anyone who has fond memories of the place.
The rare photos, which were posted to social media earlier this week, have captured the attentions of people all across Greater Manchester, going on to rack up thousands of interactions, shares and comments.
Everything from smashed windows and empty popcorn cabinets, to abandoned control rooms, gutted cinema screens, and long out-dated promotional posters for films still yet to be released, mean the site of the former cinema no longer resembles the popular hub it once was.
Sure, it’s an eerie sight for now, but it won’t be one for long.
Showcase Cinema agreed to sell the land to Manchester City Council last year, and a formal planning application to redevelop the extensive plot was officially lodged last month.
This news also gave Mancunians a glimpse at plans for The Co-Op Academy Belle Vue – which will be a free school for 1,200 pupils – for the first time, before it’s expected to welcome its first set of Year 7 students this September.
The plans released to the public showed a modern L-shaped building split into three ‘zones’.
It starts with a two-storey sports block, which will boast a sports hall, auditorium, and a drama studio, and the central three-storey building includes the school’s reception, a community hub with a library on the floor above, and a dining hall.
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An adjoining sports hall also has a separate entrance for out of hours use by the wider Belle Vue community, alongside a 140-space car park.
To the rear of the proposed building – which is currently a car park – two large playing fields will be provided, along with a multi-use games area (MUGA) and training grids, which would have three courts to accommodate tennis and basketball courts, a five-a-side football pitch, and practice areas for netball and hockey.
Things are going to look very different.
Sir Robert McAlpine / Space Architects
Fancy having a scroll through a couple more photos?
You can view the full collection of photos of the abandoned Showcase Cinema site on Exploring with Jake’s Facebook page here.
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And that’s not all there is to see either.
If you’re keen to look a little further around the site of the former ‘showground of the world’ that was Belle Vue, including both photos and a video tour of the iconic greyhound dog racing arena and motorcycle speedway tracks – which were the home grounds of Elite League team Belle Vue Aces from 1988 until 2015, and then used for stock car and banger racing from 1999 until 2019 – then be sure to head on over to Exploring with Jake’s page and check out the most recent posts.
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Horror film due to be released in the UK this week is so scary it’s triggered Apple Watch high heart rate alerts
Daisy Jackson
A film that’s been labelled a ‘horror nightmare’ is set to make its big screen premiere in the UK this week.
The Outwaters has been disturbing audiences across the USA with its ‘found footage’ format, which follows four travellers as they encounter a menacing phenomena while camping in a remote stretch of the Mojave Desert.
Cinema-goers have reported extreme reactions, like having to leave screenings to vomit and also smart watch heart rate monitors showing alerts.
One scary movie fan said it ‘more effectively scares me than anything I’ve ever seen’.
Another labelled it ‘Goddamn terrifying stuff’.
One person said: “I’m still processing #TheOutwaters. I am not sure if it worked for me. The sounding made me so uncomfortably dizzy that I had to leave the theatre to vomit. This never happened to me before. It’s more disturbing than scary if that makes any sense.”
Credit: The Outwaters
Another said: “@TheOutwaters has solidified my opinion that I believe this to have one of the most horrific and traumatizing sequences i’ve ever experienced in a found footage horror film.”
One review reads: “the outwaters is possibly the most upsetting movie i’ve ever watched. and i mean that as a compliment.”
One more said: “The Outwaters may be my new favorite horror movie, highly recommend if you’re into weird f*cked up shit.”
Someone else posted: “Watched The Outwaters the other day and immediately fell in love – it’s the kind of mind-bending indie horror nightmare I’m constantly looking for, just unfiltered awesome creativity firing on all cylinders. Major props to everyone in front of and behind the camera, I loved it!”
And one person described it as a ‘surreal blood soaked mindf*ck through hell’.
Now, The Outwaters Twitter account has confirmed that the film will be streaming in UK cinemas from 7 April.
Screenings may be few and far between to start with, but horror fans, this looks to be one well worth seeking out.
Chris Pine took part in one of the north’s most infamous pub crawls… weirdly
Daisy Jackson
Hollywood star Chris Pine has revealed this week that he spent a year at uni up north – and even took part in one of the country’s most infamous pub crawls.
The Star Trek star was interviewed on Capital FM, where he touched on his memories of studying in Leeds, and on tackling the legendary student drinking challenge that is the Otley Run.
Chris Pine is an American actor best known for his roles as Jamie T. Kirk in Star Trek, Steve Trevor in Wonder Woman and Lord Devereaux in The Princess Diaries 2.
Appearing on Capital FM’s breakfast show this morning with Roman Kemp, Sian Welby and Chris Stark, Pine reminisced on his days studying in Yorkshire.
Kemp kicked off the show with “It’s Capital Breakfast and this morning we are joined by probably the only Hollywood A-lister to attend Leeds university.”
Chris Pine in Don’t Worry Darling. Credit: Warner Bros
“I don’t know, you’ll have to check the alumni book but I’m pretty sure that’s probably accurate” the actor admitted.
Pine explains that he studied in Leeds for one year as an exchange student, when he was just 19 years old.
Chris Stark quickly jumped in to ask Chris about the iconic Leeds student pub crawl, The Otley Run, and whether or not he’d done it as a young undergraduate.
“I don’t remember much of it but yes I have done it.”
“Do you remember what you wore?” Stark responds.
“No I don’t, I remember…nothing.”
Image: Esquire (via Twitter)
He admits that although the crawl consists of 18 bars, he himself has never made it to each one.
He continues to explain that although he now lives in sunny California and has done for most of his life, he in fact lived in the UK for a total of four years between the ages of 29 and 40.
“There’s so much Hollywood work over here but I have yet to go back to Leeds.
“I have all these memories. I lived on Brudenell road and I can see the market across the street and I know the walk to school and the great old cinema on the corner of Brudenell and Hyde Park. I just have these images of school there.”
Image: University of Leeds
So next time you’re wondering down Brudenell Road or catching a flick at Hyde Park Picture House, just know that those hallowed halls were once home to Hollywood royalty.
And who knows, Pine might be hopping on a plane to Leeds Bradford airport after being reminded of such happier times – so make sure to keep an eye out.
Emily Sergeant -
4th February 2021 
