The Hyde Park Picture House, one of the UK’s oldest and most treasured cinemas, is to reopen its doors on Friday 30 June, as work on its refurbishment nears completion.

Thanks to support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the 109-year-old Leeds cinema has successfully carried out significant restoration works throughout the past two years, including repairs to its façade and external lamppost, the restoration of original terrazzo flooring, and the refurbishment of its nine gas lights which will be lit for every screening.

The Picture House Project, which received funding from Leeds City Council and the Garfield Weston Foundation, has also introduced new accessible facilities, including a ramped entrance, Café Bar, Community Room, platform lift and wheelchair accessible toilet. A brand-new 50-seat second screen, located in the cinema’s basement, will open later in July – allowing the Picture House to expand its programme and bring to Leeds even more award-winning films from around the world.

The cinema reopens at the end of June with Wes Anderson’s critically acclaimed Asteroid City, followed by a summer of screenings and launch events for each of the Picture House’s distinct programme strands. Events being announced today include:

• A preview screening of endearing new Dutch documentary Shabu (4^th July), accompanied by a director Q&A – which launches the cinema’s weekly documentary strand, Tuesday Wonders.
• A season of films in partnership with Leeds International African Arts Festival (from 11^th July), as part of the Picture House’s new Cinema Africa! strand celebrating the best new African film.
• A special screening of Yorkshire classic Brassed Off (30^th July), with a Q&A with director Mark Herman – launching the cinema’s new classics strand, reRUN.

During its opening week, the Picture House is also holding a series of open days, where audiences are invited to visit the cinema, explore the new and refurbished spaces, enjoy free films on the big screen and see archive material up close in the new Community Room.

More screenings and events will be announced over the coming days and weeks, with tickets available via the cinema’s new website which launches today. Designed and built by local Leeds agencies Rabbithole and Let’s Dance, visitors to HPPH.co.uk can learn more about the cinema, its unique history and the work that’s been carried out in recent years, with regular stories published via its new online journal.

Picture by Ollie Jenkinson