Pinewood Shepperton profits fall amid pressure on Grade
- Published
The seventh Harry Potter film will be released later this year
Profits at Pinewood Shepperton studios have continued to fall, amid pressure for chairman Michael Grade to resign.
The investment fund Crystal Amber, which owns 27% of the company, has called for Mr Grade to step down after profits have more than halved since the business was floated in 2004.
In the six months to June, profits fell to £1.53m, from £1.66m a year ago.
The group's studios have been used for films including Clash of the Titans and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Revenue fell slightly to £19m in the first half from £20.1m a year earlier.
But the firm raised its interim dividend to 1.1 pence, from 1.05p in 2009.
In May, Pinewood had said that a number of production companies had delayed the start of filming, meaning some film revenues would be shifted to the second half.
Chief executive Ivan Dunleavy said he expected overall revenues for the year to show "strong growth ahead of market expectations".