The former Odeon cinema on Gloucester Green is set to be demolished by Oxford City Council this summer. The cinema was closed at the end of January last year with plans to use the site for a £47m council project. It will be redeveloped into a new hotel and community space.
Oxford City Council have approved plans by Marick Real Estate, in partnership with Makespace Oxford, for the construction of an aparthotel. This will consist of 145 rooms on the upper five storeys, along with a bar and a cafe. It will be operated by the Dublin-based operator Staycity Group under its Wilde brand. Plans for the development also include a cultural community space on the ground floor.
The demolition of the former building will start this summer and is projected to be completed by the end of the year or at the beginning of 2027. Following this, the construction of the new hotel complex is expected to be finished by the end of 2028. The project is part of the Council’s effort to revitalise the area and support local jobs.
Because of the building’s much-frequented location at the intersection between George Street and Gloucester Green, the demolition and subsequent construction process has the potential to cause disruption to the activity in the area. Trading in Gloucester Green market and neighbouring businesses, including the Old Fire Station venue, are particularly likely to be affected.
An Oxford student told Cherwell: “I’ve always enjoyed visiting Gloucester Green market for the food and the vibrant atmosphere, but I think construction noise would put me off.”
The building has been in operation as a cinema since 1936, when it opened as the Ritz Cinema, and has since passed through several owners before it became an Odeon in 2000. Its closure in 2025 followed that of the Odeon on Magdalen Street, which shut in the summer of 2023 after 99 years of business.
Another student told Cherwell that although the former Odeon on Gloucester Green was affordable, “I only went once – I prefer independent cinemas”.
Earlier this year, The Oxford Cinema & Café was opened on the Magdalen Street site. In addition to this, Oxford’s cinemas include Phoenix Picturehouse in Jericho, the Curzon in Westgate, Ultimate Picture Palace on Cowley Road, and Vue on Grenoble Road, although the last is situated in Littlemore outside of the Oxford ring-road. Oxford’s nearest Odeon is now located in Aylesbury.
