£2m turn-on for ‘no romp’ movie lights

NINE cinema gas lights fitted to deter couples getting too amorous are to be refurbished thanks to the National Lottery.

The modesty lighting was designed to prevent “inappropriate behaviour in the back seats” when the Hyde Park Picture House opened in Leeds in 1914.

As well as upgrading the lights, a £2.3million facelift will bring a second screen in the basement, a new foyer and upgraded facade.

The cinema opened at the start of World War One and broadcast newsreels and morale-lifting dramas.

A Lottery spokesman said: “The lights, originally installed to deter any inappropriate behaviour in the back seats, continue to be lit every day. Refurbishment will ensure they flicker long into the future.”