Oxford’s cultural leader has urged Oriel College to collaborate with the Ultimate Picture Palace amid uncertainty over the venue’s survival.
This week, supporters launched an effort to protect the historic cinema on Cowley Road from shutting down when its current agreement ends.
The venue’s owner, which forms part of the University of Oxford, has indicated it will not prolong the tenancy past 2037, according to UPP representatives.
Instead, the institution intends to incorporate the Grade II protected structure into its ‘Fifth Quad’ expansion scheme once the lease concludes.
Tom Jowett and Micaela Tuckwell operate the UPP.
Councillor Alex Hollingsworth stands atop the Town Hall. Image: Jon Lewis.
Alex Hollingsworth, Oxford City Council’s culture portfolio holder, stated that the Ultimate Picture Palace serves as both a physical venue and community cinema that is essential to Oxford’s historical and cultural identity.
He noted the establishment was originally constructed as a cinema, and this year marks 50 years since the reopening of the renovated Penultimate Picture Palace, a venue where countless Oxford residents experienced radical and exciting art and forged friendships.
He emphasised that such locations matter not only for their architecture but for bringing diverse people together.
This explains why the council was pleased to designate the UPP as an Asset of Community Value, he added.
The independent cinema received this classification from the council in mid-2025 to acknowledge its significant social, cultural and historical contribution to the city.
The designation also aims to provide additional safeguarding as the venue works to establish long-term stability.
The college must engage with the UPP to ensure this treasured establishment endures, not merely its physical structure but its essential cultural and social role serving the entire community, Mr Hollingsworth continued.
The Oxford Preservation Trust has similarly backed the initiative.
The trust commented that for more than a century, countless individuals have walked through its doors, exchanging stories, discovering films and cultivating community spirit around independent cinema.
As the council’s heritage officer observed in a recent assessment, the cinema’s past is inseparable from the broader narrative of independent cinema and Oxford itself.
Historic venues such as the UPP contribute fundamentally to Oxford’s distinctive character and cultural depth. Once they disappear, recreating them proves extraordinarily difficult.
Those who cherish independent cinema, historic architecture and the cultural vitality of our city should consider signing the petition urging that the cinema’s future be secured.
The Change.org campaign has now accumulated more than 14,000 signatures.
An Oriel College spokesperson commented that the institution takes pride in its heritage cinema, the Ultimate Picture Palace, and maintains communication with the new operators regarding ensuring continued public access. No lease extension is contemplated at this preliminary stage of the tenancy.