The UK cinemas named among the world’s most beautiful

As we power through awards season, statuettes are being handed to filmmakers for best picture, production design, actor and director – but what about the cinemas behind the silver screen?

Time Out has announced its most beautiful cinemas in the world ahead of the Oscars on Sunday (2 March), with eight UK and Irish screens making the list of handsome picture houses.

In London, the swanky screens of the Soho House Group at The Electric took fifth in the rankings, hailed as the “comfiest cinema on the planet” for its luxury beds and unique concession stands, while Dalston’s Art Deco Rio Cinema was declared 13th best.

Elsewhere in the city, BFI Southbank, the “beating heart of British cinema”, scored 32nd spot, with Genesis Cinema on Mile End Road (39th) and the minimalist popcorn provider at Curzon Bloomsbury (44th) also making Time Out’s top 50.

Dublin’s swishest cinema, The Stella (14th), has been restored to its old 1920s grandeur with mosaic tiling and art deco railings, while Mareel on the Shetland Islands made a surprising entry in 24th as a cinema with both screens and seal spotting in Lerwick.

The elevated Everyman Cinema chain also featured on the list for its “implausibly chic” Bath outpost (43rd), formerly the Tivoli Cinema.

As for first place, Le Grand Rex, Paris, was hailed as a “beacon for movie lovers” to be named the world’s most beautiful cinema with seven screens hosting glamorous premieres inside the 1932 style exterior in cream and champagne tones.

Phil De Semlyen, Time Out’s global film editor, said: “What makes a special cinema? A colossal IMAX screen and cutting-edge 4K projectors are all great but we also love it when there’s something more that makes a great temple of cinema – a sense of storytelling that starts before you’ve even grabbed your popcorn and taken your seat.

“There are a few cinemas that truly stand apart for this: cine-temples so historic, beautiful and unusual that they make taking in a movie feel like an act of pilgrimage.

“We’ve scoured the globe, from London to Paris, Jaipur and New York to Sydney and Copenhagen, to highlight the 50 most heavenly movie theatres on the planet.”