Sidcup Storyteller cinema and café are being refurbished to provide a better experience for visitors from the autumn under new management.

Details of the new operator – which will honour the existing membership offer - will be announced in the coming weeks. In the meantime, from 29 July, the cinema and café will be closed for a short period for refitting. Sidcup Library will remain open as usual throughout the cinema refurbishment.

The London Borough of Bexley has been working hard to ensure the long-term future of the cinema, following the liquidation of the operator, RLG (Blockbuster) Ltd on 6 January this year.

The cinema has continued operating since this time under a temporary licence, whilst a new long-term lease holder was sought.

The cinema under the current management will close temporarily on 29 July, to allow the current managers to strip out and for new equipment to be added. The refurbished cinema and associated café are expected to open in early September. Details of the re-opening will be published as soon as possible.

The Council’s Cabinet Member for Place Shaping, Cllr Cafer Munur, said:

We look forward to welcoming the new cinema operator to re-open this popular venue. This building, where our library service is co-located with the cinema and café, is one of which we are all rightly proud. It’s pivotal to the High Street in Sidcup and to our community’s enjoyment of the town.

We faced a difficult position in January when the cinema’s operator experienced wider financial difficulties across its business. Since then, officers have worked tirelessly to ensure best value for the Borough but also best fit for the Storyteller. We are enormously grateful to the on-site staff for their continued support in continuing to deliver a great experience for film fans over the past few months as we make this transition.”

The Sidcup Storyteller has won a range of awards, including a coveted Civic Trust Award in April where the judges said that “as a cornerstone of Sidcup’s regeneration, it embodies the transformative power of architecture, enhancing not only the streetscape but also the lives of those it serves.”