Save London's Curzon Soho cinema
Why is this important?
The Curzon Soho is one of London's flagship arthouse cinemas. Recent newspaper reports reveal that it may be knocked down to make way for the Crossrail 2 development. The West End Extra newspaper originally broke the story about a possible demolition on 12 Dec and it was taken up by the Daily Telegraph on 30 Dec.
- West End Extra article:
- Daily Telegraph article:
In the recent past, the Curzon Soho has been named the best cinema in London by readers of the listings magazine 'Time Out'. However, this lovely cinema is under threat as it has been named a "surface area of interest" by those organising the £25 billion Crossrail 2 project.
Losing the Curzon Soho would be yet another nail in the coffin for the arts in London for the sake of the commercial and financial gain of the minority. Any proposal to demolish this wonderful cinema would be yet another example of the rampant 'beigification' of London. Londoners should unite and reject any proposals to destroy our cultural heritage.
On 30 Dec 2014, the Curzon released a statement on its website about the impact of the Crossrail project on its Soho venue. It said that "at the present time Curzon Cinemas have not received any formal notification or been invited directly to consult on proposals which may affect this iconic venue. The open consultation process is active until 29 January 2015". To access the statement in full see:
However, to save the Curzon Soho from such a destructive and shameful fate we need to get ready to fight for its wellbeing right now - before it's too late. A petition signed by 100s or 1000s of people whilst the open consultation process is ongoing may just make developers think twice about demolishing our arthouse cinema.
How it will be delivered
The petition will be emailed to Crossrail developers as well as the Mayor of London. A copy will also be emailed to Curzon management.