BACK TO THE BOX OFFICE CAMPAIGN: The Palace Cinema, Broadstairs, Kent
For 2025, ‘cene Magazine is launching a campaign to get visitors heading back to the box office. We will be profiling cinemas and theatres from across Kent to remind our readers how magical the experience of watching a live show or seeing a film on the big screen really is.
If you’ve ever walked down Harbour Street in Broadstairs you will have seen The Palace Cinema. Its historic flint facade is unmistakable and not dissimilar to that of a small church or public building.
But the congregation who flock to the Grade II-listed building daily are in search of enlightenment by the medium of film.
In March 2016, The Palace was acquired by Corinna Downing and Simon Ward, a couple who had devoted their careers to independent cinema. Simon, a film distributor for the Institute of Contemporary Arts, had been programming independent cinemas and festivals as well as being involved in the London Film Festival, while Corinna had worked in education working to bring the likes of BAFTA and the British Film Institute into schools and universities.
Having moved out of London a decade ago and settling into a new life in Broadstairs, the pair discovered that The Palace was up for sale, and had been for a number of years, without finding a suitable buyer.
Taking on a small business in the modern day is not for the faint-hearted, while taking on a cinema in the age of streaming platforms and out-of-town multiplexes is brave… very brave. While they knew cinema, the new owners didn’t necessarily know how to run one.
“The cinema had a very loyal audience before we started,” says Corinna. “So they were very patient with us as we kind of got our heads around it at the start. But also when we took it on, we thought there was no point showing all the same films as everyone else.
“At that point, there were three cinemas nearby, including the 10-screen Vue cinema at Westwood Cross. The only reason for us to take on the cinema was to offer something different.”
A balance was sought between retaining viewers who loved the big commercial films while also using their knowledge of independent film.
“We didn’t want to lose the audience that had been going for years but were definitely skewing towards independent and classic films that you won’t see anywhere else near us,” says Corinna.
But with a capacity of a little over 100 and just one screen, The Palace has its work cut out in fitting a varied array of films in its schedule.
“I think when you’re programming, you’re not programming for yourself and the skill of it is knowing that about your many different audiences,” says Simon. “Often we will see films quite some time before they come out and then we’ve got to guess what the press reaction will be and who is releasing the film, so what impact will that have on the visibility and the marketing of the film? And then, of course, what will the audience reaction be? So all of those things come into play.
“Is it a cult film appealing to young people in some way that’s brand-new? Or cutting-edge? Or is it something much more mainstream, an Oscar-winning film, or something deeply commercial?
“Throughout a month, sculpt a programme that appeals to all these different audiences and doesn’t alienate anyone.”
Entering through the doorway of The Palace does feel like a step into not necessarily a different era but certainly a place where the experiential traditions of the cinema visit are treasured as much as the films themselves.
“When you come in, you’ll feel welcomed right away,” says Corinna. “It’s not a big neutral space, it’s a small space. All our staff have been with us for a long time, so they’re all kind of film nerds now, even if they weren’t already when they arrived! We’re not forcing you to talk about film, but if you want to, there’s someone there who will be up for that – it’s a real film space.
“You step through that into the cinema space, which is amazing, lovely, cozy. It was built in about 1910, so it’s this lovely historic space, but it just feels really special.”
A balcony area is one of the favourite spots for regulars, a number of whom book ‘their’ seat for the entire monthly programme.
Indeed the community are a big part of The Palace, with Corinna and Simon doing a lot of work with nearby schools, as well as diving into the history of cinema locally.
“We also did a big project last year that involved volunteers, and all of them expressed an interest in still being part of the cinema after that project had ended,” says Corinna. “So we started this thing with volunteer ushers. It’s just members of the community, aged between 18 and 80 who sign up to be with us for about six months. They’re down there with a torch helping people to their seats.
“We don’t really need someone because it’s so small, but it’s made such a difference, just that sense that someone’s there looking after you and can help with whatever you need. Ushers are something that disappeared in most cinemas decades ago, but bringing them back has really lifted things in a way we didn’t really realise it was going to.”
This year, The Palace was listed in the top 50 of Time Out magazine’s best cinemas in the UK for a second time, taking number 38, and finishing higher than more than 1,000 others.
“One of the nice things about being listed in Time Out was they said it was kind of like stepping into a little cinema in Paris or something, which is normally not all we’re aiming for, but, you know, there’s that feeling where you’re stepping into something that’s a bit magical,” says Corinna.
It was also nominated in the biannual Screen International awards, competing with the likes of BFI Southbank in London.
But it hasn’t all been plain sailing.
If the challenges of the Covid pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis hadn’t already stuck the boot in, the actors’ and writers’ strikes in Hollywood last year added a totally new dimension to the issues faced by cinemas. Even some of the huge multiplexes mothballed a lot of their screens to downsize and adjust to the lack of films coming through the pipeline.
“There have been a lot fewer films available to show, and so that’s been difficult,” says Simon. “To give you an example of that, normally every summer there are six big Hollywood kids’ films – you know, Despicable Me-type films. In 2024 there was one.
“Also, there are always too many films looking for a cinema release and, you know, many of these would never get to a cinema. They would go straight to a streamer or something. But we didn’t want to show films that we thought people would come along to and then be disappointed by because they weren’t quite good enough. So that’s why we chose, along with a raft of other cinemas in the UK, to go part-time.”
The Palace trimmed down its viewings from August through to Christmas 2024 but still managed to keep hold of all its staff. Thankfully, things are starting to get back to normal and, while Corinna and Simon do have the knowledge and contacts to be able to source more rare and indie films from across the globe, more commercial releases will always have an audience… as long as they make it to the cinema first and aren’t shopped straight to stream.
“It depends on the film and depends on the streaming platform,” says Simon. “So if it’s a big Netflix release, then it absolutely impacts us. People won’t come out to the cinema if it’s on Netflix in two weeks’ time. With other platforms, not so much. So things like Apple and Amazon are pretty good. They give a theatrical window, so they’ll say it’s ‘only in cinemas for the first three months’ or whatever.
“In the more kind of world cinema, which we do, a lot of people are loyal to a cinema experience and really want to see it, so we don’t find it impacts on that.”
INFO: thepalacecinema.co.uk
INSTA: thepalacecinema
