All cinemas in the mainland UK and Ireland are closed. (Two on the Isle of Man and one on Guernsey are open.) Northern Ireland has a preposed reopening date of February 6, although this is subject to reassessment, and cinemas in Ireland are looking at a tentative opening date of January 31.
In France where all cinemas are also closed, culture minister Roselyne Bachelot said this week cultural spaces including cinemas are unlikely to reopen in January. The National Federation of French Cinemas went to court before Christmas to protest the forced closure of cinemas at a time when non-essential shops were allowed to open. The legal bid was rejected by France’s Council of State.
Cinemas in both Germany and Italy remain closed, until at least January 10 and 15 respectively. Covid-19 infection rates are starting to decline in Germany, raising hopes entertainment venues could soon reopen, although daily deaths continue to increase.
In Italy both daily cases and deaths have been declining since November…