MADAM, The inaugural Screen at the Phoenix film festival is about to start, and I know, from talking to dozens of people around town, that there's tremendous enthusiasm for the new venture.
This is the first permanent, purpose-made cinema facility in Ross for nearly 30 years, and the festival that launches it will feature 14 fantastic films – comedies, classics, sci-fi, recent box office hits (including the one everyone asks about, The King's Speech) and a couple of superb foreign-language movies.
Tickets have been selling well since the box office opened a fortnight ago, and film fans can book tickets from now until the end of the festival, online at http://www.phoenix-theatre.org.uk">www.phoenix-theatre.org.uk, or over the counter at Rossiter Books in the High Street. They can, of course, also try their luck at the Phoenix on the night (or afternoon), in which case they should turn up at least 15 minutes before the screening starts.
The full festival programme, with screening times and plot synopses, can be found on the Phoenix website, http://www.phoenix-theatre.org.uk">www.phoenix-theatre.org.uk. It's also available as a black and white leaflet from the library, the Visitor Centre, the Phoenix itself, and a number of shops around the town.
So come on, Ross film fans – book today. Let's launch this fantastic new addition to the town's cultural attractions with the full houses it deserves.
Simon Cropper, Screen at the Phoenix