Talk:Odeon Cinemas
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There is a UCI Filmworks in High Wycombe - is this to be rebranded or sold off? Also, it might be worth writing something about the purchase of older brands such as Cannon and ABC if this information is available.
If you check the UCI entry at United Cinemas International it has details about High Wycombe.
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[edit] Website Controversy
As I recall, there was an uproar over Odeon's website, which used a lot of complicated HTML and JavaScript and would only display correctly in IE. [1] The unofficial Accessible Odeon website was released, but later shut down by Odeon themselves. As of a couple of weeks ago, the website has been fully redesigned and now works correctly.
And I think we need a paragraph or two about that.
I will draft one out soon. I have to figure out how to NPOV it first. Ppk01 21:23, 14 May 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Odeon Ireland
As I understand it Terra Firma Have sold off the ireland sites to a "new" operator could any one in the know update regarding this
Not to the best of my knowledge - the UCI sites are part of the chain, they are using the Odeon logo font in some of their advertising (the UCI logo looking very strangely out of place), have introduced Premier seating (why is a different question, they've been empty any time I've been there...), and when you book tickets "Odeon UCI" appears. Apparently Coolock has even been refurbished in the Odeon look and feel, though I haven't been there to confirm. The copyright on the website is still "United Cinemas International (UK) Limited" and still refers to Terra Firma as the owner.
I'm sure there would have been something in the Irish press regarding this, they certainly covered well Ward Anderson's purchase of Empire (despite what Wikipedia says...).
Why they haven't rebranded as Odeon here can only be two reasons - either they are indeed up for sale (Ward Anderson or Movies@ likely to buy? Vue is apparently indeed trying to get rid of its Irish cinema and Cineworld and its predecessors have never shown enthusiasim for expansion) or (more likely) there is a problem with the use of the name. Remember Ward Anderson continued to operate the Odeon Cinema on the quays in Dublin until the early 1990s, they may still have rights over the name. --Rdd 20:53, 11 October 2006 (UTC)
- The plot wierdly thickens - UCI have this week launched a new Irish website that says that the Irish cinemas were sold to an Irish company called "Entertainment Enterprises" in September 2006. But no stories regarding this were published in the Irish business media at the time (and it would have been a major story, if not from a business then a property angle). A Google search reveals nothing on this transaction, how much it was for, or who Entertainment Enterprises are. A search at the CRO (Irish version of Companies House) indicates (fom the registered office address) that the company seem to be the ones behind the Leisureplex tenpin bowling chain but nothing to really cororabate that, at least within the free information available.
- And apparently the three cinemas have effectively been leased back to Odeon - the new website states that Odeon are still managing the cinemas and the copyright line has now changed to "Odeon Cinemas Limited". So they are, either way, still part of the Odeon chain... --Rdd 12:01, 12 August 2007 (UTC)
[edit] First Cinema
Corrected to Brierley Hill, Dudley cinema opened in 1928 as shown in an email I received from Odeon promoting their return to their roots with the completion of the conversion of the UCI in Brierley Hill to an Odeon. --CartmanUK26 11:16, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Mergers and acquisitions
"In just 10 years between the first of the cinemas and Deutsch's death in 1941, 258 Odeons opened throughout Britain."
How many of these were new build, and how many were existing cinemas acquired from other companies?
To give one example, the old (and now derelict) Odeon in Newcastle upon Tyne originally opened in 1931 as a Paramount cinema - in fact you can still see the stylized Paramount mountain logo near the top of the building. It became an Odeon in 1940 (were other British Paramounts converted to Odeon at around the same time?) 217.155.20.163 10:35, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
Also, how can the Odeon in Brierley Hill have opened in 1928 if the Odeon chain wasn't even created until 1930? Did it originally open under a different name? 217.155.20.163 10:35, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
This has now been corrected! According to Odeon themselves the first cinema was 1928!CartmanUK26 08:39, 26 October 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Corrections
I have made corrections to the article to give it more clarity. The first cinema opened by Oscar was in Brierley Hill, but the first Odeon cinema was in Perry Barr, Birmingham. I have added references to support this. - Erebus555 11:10, 18 May 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Kingstanding
I've read other sources, not to hand, saying that Kingstanding was the first Art Deco Odeon, and the one which included subsequent designs. Since it's only a mile tor two from Perry Barr, I think the cited source may be mistaken. Andy Mabbett 12:10, 18 May 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Someone changed the name of this article.
The name of this article is reading Ody Cinemas instead of Odeon cinemas. This error should be fixed, Ody changed back to Odeon 195.97.228.69 (talk) 09:57, 14 March 2008 (UTC)
