Odeon to move into closing Cineworld sites

Cineworld at Sixfields Leisure will be replaced with an Odeon in 2025

A new cinema is set to open in a town, in the same building as one which is to close.

Odeon is opening at Sixfields Leisure in Weedon Road, Northampton, taking over from Cineworld which will cease trading on 19 January.

The closure is part of a nationwide change affecting six Cineworld locations, where landlords opted to reclaim properties following the company's restructuring plan.

Legal and General, the site's landlords, confirmed the move in a statement: "We are pleased to announce that we have secured new agreements with Odeon to take over two cinema sites in Northampton and Middlesbrough."

In July, Cineworld announced the closure of five other sites, including Bedford.

A petition to keep Northampton's Cineworld open garnered more than 800 signatures, calling its closure "another important staple of our town being taken away".

A similar petition to the save the Odeon in Kettering was signed by more than 2,000 people, but the council has approved its demolition when it shuts in February.

Legal and General said refurbishment will follow Cineworld's departure in February, with the new Odeon expected to open "later in the year".