Space Age Cinema: The Rise and Fall of Cinecenta

This article explores the short history of the Cinecenta chain of cinemas that operated in the UK between 1968 and 1979. It was run by Leslie Elliot and developed out of the Compton Group headed by the producers and distributors Tony Tenser and Michael Klinger. The article contends that the negative reputation of Cinecenta (largely a result of the sad decline of the company) as a disreputable purveyor of sex films is inaccurate and that, at least at its inception, the philosophy of the Cinecenta brand was to innovate in relation to its programming ethos, the marketing and promotion of its product exhibited and the design of its cinemas. The article places Cinecenta in the context of film exhibition in the late 1960s and early 1970s – a time of bold innovation, despite declining theatrical ticket sales – and looks for the first time in detail at the films screened as part of Cinecenta’s early schedules. Also discussed is the way in which the Cinecenta project was an attempt at exporting more adventurous film programming to audiences outside central London. The article concludes by suggesting that the more visionary aspects of the Cinecenta project could be useful in rethinking about how we might engage with cinema in the twenty-first century.