RESIDENTS enjoyed the comfort of new plush red tiered seating at a VIP screening event in Malmesbury this week.
A brand-new projector worth £40,000 and retractable seating worth £50,000 and were unveiled at a VIP screening of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry in Malmesbury Town Hall on Monday evening, July 3.
The old dining chairs have been replaced by 100 pocket-sprung seats which stack neatly at the back of the Town Hall Assembly Room.
This new system is quickly deployed by a touch of a button and takes minutes to set up and put away - plus there is also plenty of space for wheelchair users at the front.
The seating was funded by Malmesbury Town Council and was manufactured and installed by a Wiltshire-based Audience Systems.
Half of the cost of the new projector was funded by the town council with the rest made up from donations.
Local businesses who donated towards the new project include Persimmon Homes, Malmesbury Area Community Trust, Malmesbury League of Friends, the Area Board, St Paul Malmesbury Without Parish Council, James Dyson Foundation, Warden and Freemen of Malmesbury and Charlton Parish Council.
The council funds have come from reserves but town council members believe that the extra income that the new seating is likely to generate means the investment should pay for itself.
A steering group, led by Cllr Steve D’Arcy with volunteers from the Movies@Malmesbury project, was behind the project.
Cllr Steve D’Arcy said: "People told us that the old seating was putting them off coming to see films and livestreamed events at the Town Hall.
“In fact, some Malmesbury residents would travel to other venues, even if we had the films here first, simply because the seats were so uncomfortable.
“This seating is a real gamechanger, because it’s something the whole community can benefit from, it’ll give us greater scope for music and theatre productions, and generate an income which we can use in Malmesbury.”
Movies@Malmesbury shows matinees and evening screenings at Malmesbury Town Hall, usually on Mondays and Fridays with live streamed musical concerts mid-week.
For the cinema programme, screen times and to book tickets visit tinyurl.com/4wdx5wkk
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