THE COMEBACK
Screens will be fogged, masked and distanced but cinemas will return
Film fans in England could be revisiting cinemas in a few weeks’ time but Scots will have a longer wait before taking their seats.
All the major cinema chains are putting in place measures to protect customers with theatres unlikely to be more than half-full. The one-metre minimum social distancing rule in England would mean roughly two seats between different households with the Showcase chain saying seats will be “fogged” between screenings. Face masks will be encouraged but can be removed when seats are taken. However, blockbuster movies meant to open in the next few weeks have been delayed again and will not now be released until August. Cineworld said: “The opening dates are subject to confirmation in regards to various government restrictions in some of our territories, with dates to follow for our cinemas in Scotland”.
The chain, which has a string of branches across Scotland, said it was putting a number of safety measures in place for customers and employees when its theatres reopened.
These include staggered film start and end times, and hand-sanitising s. Staff will also be given ific training around Covidall ssues. employee and tomer areas will be arranged managed to maintain ial distancing. Seating ps have also been updated ensure social distancing es are followed but will still w families and friends to together. However, a date the reopening of Scottish as is still to be confirmed. mas north of the border uld potentially reopen phase three of the olyrood road map out of ckdown. tudios are tentatively ning a release schedule -fi blockbuster Tenet, seen as a est for the cinemas’ new normal, was last week put back from July to August along wth Disney’s live action version of Mulan.