UK cinema attendances soar thanks to Quantum of Solace

UK cinema admissions soared 40pc in November as James Bond film Quantum of Solace and High School Musical 3 attracted people of all ages to the silver screen, reports The Telegraph.

Phil Clapp, the chief executive of the Cinema Exhibitors' Association said that there were 13.53m admissions to the cinema in November, despite the economic downturn leading to growing concern among consumers.

Mr Clapp revealed that 2008 had been a strong year for cinema attendance and expects admissions to be up 2.5pc year-on-year to 167m. This would make 2008 the strongest year for cinema-going in since 2004, which saw 171.3m admissions in the year. "This confirms the view that cinema holds up well in times of economic difficulties," said Mr Clapp.

He highlighted the success of Mamma Mia! The Movie, which earlier this month became the highest grossing UK film of all time. The feel-good film also made last summer the strongest summer for cinema attendance for 40 years, with large number of people returning to see the film two or three times.

The film has taken £69.05m at the UK box office since its release on July 18. Titanic took a total of £69.03m, followed by Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which collected £66.1m.

Mamma Mia!, which cost £28m to make and features Pierce Brosnan, Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Julie Walters, has taken $572m in box offices around the world. The DVD has also proved popular, becoming the fastest-selling DVD ever – selling 1.7m copies on its first day.

Other successes for the year include the Batman film, The Dark Knight, which has taken $996.8m (£675m)at the global box office and. At the UK box office, The Dark Knight has taken £48.7m.

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