Why isn’t there a cinema in Abingdon/Old Gaol?
In 2004 the Council commissioned a report about the possibility of using the Old Gaol for community purposes like a theatre, cinema, library and museum. The conclusion was that it was unaffordable – requiring £20million to develop the scheme and around £500,000 year subsidy. The report also concluded that grant funding would not be available and it was unlikely a commercial cinema operator would be interested in Abingdon, due to the proximity of cinemas at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford and in Didcot. Ten years ago the Council did try to allocate land near Tesco’s in Abingdon for a multiplex cinema, before the Kassam Stadium or Didcot cinemas were even planned. Unfortunately this was turned down by the Secretary of State, mainly on the grounds of traffic generation. The Council has also worked hard to attract commercial operators to take over both the Regal Cinema in Abingdon before it closed down, and the Regent Cinema in Wantage, in both cases an operator couldn’t be found.
