Shropshire Star

Behind the scenes as Telford's new Imax Cineworld takes shape

Here is the first glimpse behind the scenes of the 11-screen Imax cinema at Telford's Southwater leisure destination.

Published

Cineworld gave the Shropshire Star a sneak peek of things to come as seats and screens were put in place.

And people were queueing up to work there - with 400 applications in three days for the 66 new jobs.

Film fans will soon be able to marvel at the state-of-the art film experience when it opens on August 7- with a schedule of film releases to include Lucy, The Wizard of Oz 3D, Dracula Untold, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Interstellar and The Hobbit: Battle Of The Five Armies.

It will mean movie lovers will not have to travel to the nearest Imax in Birmingham to enjoy the enhanced picture and sound.

The 27ft high and 50ft wide Imax screen has just arrived from Canada ready to be hauled into place.

"The screen is curved and the size and quality of the picture, combined with the enhanced sound system makes it an all round film experience," said Phil Jones, the cinema's general manager.

Screen two is the largest with 350 seats and disabled access boxes.

The wall to wall screen and extended leg room promises a great view and that standing up to let people in will be a thing of the past.

On the ground floor the curved ceilings and turquoise tiles of a Starbucks are already in place.

The coffee house with an entrance opposite the Premier Inn Hotel will be open from 7am.

And the cinema itself will stay open until 10pm during the week and 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays, giving Telford Town Centre a much-needed nightlife scene.

The entrance off Southwater Square leads into the foyer where there will be self-service machines for people to pop in pick up tickets.

Cinema-goers will be greeted by a screen with trailer reels so they can see which films are coming up.

Escalators and lifts lead up to the second floor where the walls are painted a dark grey.

There people will be able to buy their popcorn and sweets along with Baskin-Robbins ice cream.

The Shropshire Star's Jennifer Meierhans gets her safety boots and hard hat on for the tour of the new CIneworld:

Sorry, we are not accepting comments on this article.