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Mystery benefactor saves city's oldest cinema

Paul Burnelland
Marc Gaier,North West
Marc Gaier/BBC A crowd of people of different ages and genders stand and applaud in the auditorium of a cinema. Marc Gaier/BBC
The moment volunteers were told an anonymous donation had taken them beyond the total needed to save the picture house

A mystery benefactor has stepped in to save Liverpool's oldest surviving cinema at the last minute.

The anonymous donor has bought the Woolton Picture House outright and has given the 99-year-old building to Woolton Cinema Community Interest Company (CIC) on a "peppercorn rent" leasing arrangement that will run until the venue's 200th anniversary.

The deadline was imminent to raise the £450,000 needed to reopen the cinema's doors after a six-year break.

Kevin Fearon, one half of the couple who fought to save the venue, said: "We always believed in this project, but to see it come together in this way - right at the very last moment - is something truly special."

Outside of the Woolton Picture House. It's an old brick building with painted red doors. A carved text reading the name of the cinema is above the doors.
Woolton Picture House first opened its doors in 1927

The cinema closed in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic before a campaign got under way to save it.

Fearon and his wife Gillian Miller, who together run the Liverpool Royal Court theatre, started their campaign last summer.

Since then, the pair have hosted seasonal showings of films to help raise money and even staged a Love Actually-themed proposal for a local couple last year.

Kevin Fearon sits in the BBC Radio Merseyside studio during an interview. The background is purple with the BBC branding. Fearon is bald and wears a dark polo zip-up.
Kevin Fearon and wife Gillian Miller already run the Liverpool Royal Court theatre

"People haven't just donated money; they've given their time, their skills, and their passion," said Fearon.

He added: "This building means so much to so many, and today proves just how powerful a community can be when it comes together behind something it loves."

The fundraising campaign has officially surpassed its £450,000 target and raised a total of £532,884 from public donations since October.

Plans are already under way to begin refurbishment, with the funds raised by the community set to play a vital role in restoring the cinema and expanding its offer into a multi-purpose space for film, live events and community activities.

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