Liverpool's oldest independent cinema to reopen for Christmas after five-year closure

Long-time residents Kevin Fearon and Gillian Miller agreed to a deal to buy and refurbish the beloved Woolton Picture House on Mason Street earlier this year.

Kevin and Gillian are best known as the driving force behind Liverpool's Royal Court, where they grew the business from a 150-seat comedy club into the region's largest full-time producing theatre. During that time, they raised £7.7 million, which was spent refurbishing the building.

The historic Woolton Picture House shut in 2020, sparking fears it was gone for good. Now, a Community Interest Company (CIC) has been set up to raise funds for the purchase and the venue’s refurbishment. Once the purchase is complete, the cinema will be a community-owned resource, managed by the Woolton community itself.

Speaking to LiverpoolWorld earlier this year, Kevin said: “We've exchanged contracts. We have a year to pay the full price and we're trying to raise the money for that. But yeah, I'm not quite ready for it, but it is so exciting.”

Fundraising officially began last week, with £700,000 needed by 2026 to get the 98-year-old gem back up and running. Woolton Cinema CIC described the campaign as “all or nothing”, noting that all donations will be refunded if the target is not reached.

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Providing an update on social media on Sunday (October 26), the Woolton Picture House team revealed that more than £14,000 was raised in the first week of fundraising (up to October 23) with the historic cinema aiming to open for the Christmas season.

The ‘12 Days of Christmas’ event will see Christmas classic screened from December 12 to 24, in a bid to raise funds for the project. The team advise that “the place is not in great shape, so you’ll need to keep your coats on but it will be safe and dry”.

Tickets are expected to go on sale soon here. Donations can be made here.