The new owners of Norwich's Cinema City said the release of the latest James Bond movie helped drive a turnaround in revenues during last year.

The cinema chain, which bought the Picturehouse chain last year, said sales were up 2.4pc in the year to December 27, offsetting a 1.4pc decline in the summer as film fans stayed at home to enjoy one-off events such as the Diamond Jubilee, Euro 2012 and London Olympics.

As well as Skyfall, which has now taken �100m at the box office, vampire hit Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn and The Hobbit helped narrow a decline in Cineworld admissions to 1.1pc, after a 4pc fall in the 19 weeks to November 8.

Average ticket prices rose by 5pc in the year, with an improvement in spend per head also helping Cineworld offset the fall in the number of cinema goers.

Cineworld, which has 101 cinemas with 878 screens, said there were 'attractive' releases planned this year, including Les Miserables, Star Trek, Iron Man 3 and the second part of The Hobbit.

Cineworld said its latest acquisition, Picturehouse, was trading in line with expectations, and it was looking to the �47.3m deal to bring it growth in a specialised sector.