Cinema saved in last-minute deal

The Cottage Road is in the student area of Headingley

An eleventh hour deal has saved a cinema in Leeds from closing.

The Cottage Road in Headingley was due to shut its doors for the last time on Thursday after its owners said it was no longer viable.

But film fan Charles Morris - who already owns five other cinemas - is to take a nine-year lease on the building in a deal struck late on Wednesday.

The cinema will reopen under its new ownership on Friday with showings of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

The Cottage Road was opened 93 years ago and was recently owned by Associated Tower Cinemas (ATC).

It is such a lovely cinema I couldn't bear to see it closed Charles Morris

The boss of ATC, Chris Ure, announced earlier this month he was closing the cinema, having already shut another one he owned in Headingley, The Lounge, in January.

Mr Morris's company, Northern Morris Associated Cinemas, has taken over ownership of The Cottage Road.

He started the firm 17 years ago after a previous career in engineering, and has other cinemas in Windermere, Skipton, Keighley, Elland and Lancaster.

Mr Morris said he was determined The Cottage Road should not be lost.

Staff staying on

"It is such a lovely cinema I couldn't bear to see it closed," he said.

All current staff are staying on, he added, and he said he hopes customers will use it more regularly.

He intends to broaden the range of films shown with more art house movies and showings for pensioners and children.

The local MP, Liberal Democrat Greg Mulholland, who has campaigned for the cinema to stay open, welcomed the news.

"As one of the oldest cinemas in the country, it would have been crazy to consign it to the history books," he said.