Border Telegraph | News | Cinema snubs popcorn ban

Tuesday, 6th January, 2009

Published: Wednesday, 13th August, 2008 09:00

Cinema snubs popcorn ban

By Ally McGilvray

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“POPCORN and cinema go hand in hand."

That is the view of Andrew Poole, who runs the Pavilion Cinema in Galashiels.

If followed the revelation that the country's largest art house cinema chain is trialling popcorn-free screenings after customers said the snack was too messy and noisy.

However, there are no plans to enforce the self-imposed ban in the Borders.

Speaking to the Border Telegraph this week, Mr Poole said: “We couldn’t afford to stop selling popcorn. We sell tonnes of the stuff every year and it represents a sizeable chunk of our turnover.”

But he added: “If the majority of our customers chose that they don’t want popcorn, and I think that’s unlikely, then we would review our policy.”

Picturehouse Cinemas, which has 19 venues across the country, will trial the scheme at some evening screenings in Norwich next month.

The chain said the decision followed customer feedback, and was likely to result in the introduction of some popcorn-free sessions rather than an outright ban.

Mr Poole said: “We do stage performances which we know we won’t sell any popcorn at, for example the live opera performances and the ballet performances we have got coming up in September.

The people who attend those performances tend not to be popcorn buyers, they buy a cup of coffee and they will have a drink at the bar on the way in.”

Popcorn has long been an integral part of the cinema experience, with audiences paying up to £4.50 for the snack.

But Picturehouse Cinema spokesman Gabriel Swartland said many customers wanted it banned. He added: “People either love or hate popcorn. It makes sound business sense to cater to both these audiences.”

amcgilvray@bordertelegraph.com

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