And the winner is....the Apollo

9:00am Tuesday 12th February 2008

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ALTRINCHAM'S recently opened cinema has reeled in a prestigious national award.

The town's Apollo has been named as the best new cinema in the country.

It beat off stiff competition from across the country to walk away with the prize at the RAAM awards - the Oscars for the UK cinema industry.

Nick McKiernan, manager of the Apollo, received the prize at a gala diner at the Milllennium Hotel in London.

He said: "It is an incredible achievement for a six screen cinema to win this award against competition from throughout the country. It is amazing that we pulled it off.

"It is a joint effort by all the staff. We are a young, enthusiastic team and everyone pulls together."

He attributed the success to a range of factors, including superb customer service, the attractive layout and fittings at the complex and the cinema's involvement in community activities, such as its support for charities.

Tony Meehan, the chairman of RAAM - a specialist cinema management consultancy - said: "The number of entries this year was the highest ever and the level of competition in every category was very fierce. Apollo Cinema in Altrincham was judged by an independent panel of film distributors including Warner Bros to be the best in the UK, and is fully deserving of the recognition awarded."

When the cinema opened in December 2006 it marked the return of the big screen to Altrincham after a gap of nearly a quarter of a century, with the town's last cinema closing in the early 1980s.

In its first year the Apollo attracted more than 250,000 customers.