All cinemas are awesome but some are just more beautiful than others. This bunch might not have the loudest speakers or biggest screens, but they have got interiors so pretty you might forget to watch the movie…
Institute of Light
Phones – like taking off your shoes – are a cinema no-no. But you’ll struggle to contain the urge to splurge on social media after a trip to the Institute of Light’s cinema in London Fields. Tucked away under the arches of the railway line, the space is all bare brickwork and eclectic furniture – from mid-century sofas to three rows of vintage aeroplane seats. At weekends, the space doubles as a vinyl store for the independent record label BBE, and there’s a restaurant, bar and bookshop out the front.
Everyman Hampstead
Hidden away down a cul-de-sac, the Everyman has got the looks, from its retro sign to its squishy armchairs. There are two screens – the grandest has a cavernous roof and row upon row of pillar-box red seats. For a perfect Sunday, pair with a stroll on the Heath.
Electric Notting Hill
This single-screen cinema on Portobello Road definitely wins the award I’ve just made up for best date location. It’s like stepping inside a Richard Curtis movie, with leather armchairs, cashmere blankets and velvet double beds on the front row for snuggling. The Electric is one of London’s oldest cinemas and the building is Grade II listed-lovely. Inside, it keeps up the retro vibes, heaping on the Hollywood glamour so you half expect to be papped on your way out.
Rio Cinema
This Grade II-listed cinema on Kingsland High Street, virtually unchanged since the 1930s, is as famous for its art deco style, retro lettering and lit-up façade as for its programme of independent movies. In a bid to stay open, the Rio, which is run as a charity, is raising £150,000 to build a second screen and a bar/café in the basement.
Picturehouse Central
On the corner of Shaftesbury Avenue, this central London cinema is an absolute gem. It’s the antidote to Piccadilly Circus’s rage-inducing pavements, with seven screens and three floors of beautifully designed space. Before you even get anywhere near the plush screening rooms, a hundred hanging lightbulbs lead you up a grand terracotta-tiled staircase past a mural inspired by a century of cinema. A climb up another level will take you to a members-only bar with a roof terrace that looks out over the busy streets of central London.
Phoenix Cinema
From the outside, the Phoenix on East Finchley High Road is a bit of an ugly duckling. But inside, it’s an art deco, single-screen beauty with vaulted ceilings and unusual design flourishes. This vibrant aesthetic has greeted cinemagoers for over 100 years, when the East Finchley Picturedome opened its doors.
The Lexi
Everyone knows good things come in small packages, like fancy moisturiser and Pret ginger shots. This teeny cinema in Kensal Rise with its pretty pitched roof is proof. It’s cutesy, cosy, loved by locals and has a coloured light installation on the ceiling.
London visitor 