February 4, 2013 9.58 am This story is over 133 months old

Lincoln Ritz cinema to screen first film 17 years after it closed

Classic entertainment: The Ritz cinema regeneration project is set to hold a special film screening on February 22, 76 years after the original cinema was opened.
Inside the Ritz cinema auditorium at the beginning of January 2013. Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

The Ritz cinema regeneration project on Lincoln High Street is set to hold a special film screening on February 22, 76 years after the original cinema was opened.

Non-profit organisation Off The Bench will screen the classic film San Francisco, which was first played when the Ritz opened in 1937.

The screening will be the first film played on the premises in 17 years, after the cinema was closed down in 1996.

The event will raise money for the restoration project of the cinema, which spent most of its budget last year clearing asbestos found in the building.

Since the screening room is not completed, only 120 places will be available for the champagne reception and cocktails evening showing of the classic film starring Clarke Gable and Jeanette MacDonald.

The film will be played via a temporary projector and sound system the restoration team hired, and tickets cost £10, with the money going towards the project.

In March, the Ritz cinema will also hold three more classic screenings of horror films to raise funds. The film are Evil Dead, Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness.

Pete Genders from Off The Bench said: “It’s a total scarefest, we encourage dressing up as your favourite Evil Dead character. Our building is very safe but looks very derelict and a perfect abandoned building setting for a horror season.”

You can check all the upcoming events at the Ritz cinema and buy tickets on Eventbrite.

— Please note the video below contains a couple of swear words