The planned date when one of Norwich’s cinemas will reopen following lockdown for coronavirus has been pushed back - because major film releases have been delayed.

Cinema City, in St Andrews Street, had been earmarked to reopen, along with other Picturehouse cinemas across England, from Friday, July 10.However, the cinema now has a new reopening date of Friday, July 31.

Cinema bosses said that was because the release dates of new films, including the latest from Batman: The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan’s Tenet and the Disney live action remake of Mulan have been changed.

In a statement, Picturehouse said: “Following the announcement that Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated Tenet has been postponed by two weeks, along with other significant changes to the UK film calendar, including Alice Winocour’s Proxima and Disney’s Mulan, we have made the decision to now open our cinemas from July 31.

“With the ongoing pandemic, this new date remains subject to final confirmation.

“We are busy working on our full film programme, which will include Tenent, Proxima and Mulan as we’ve already mentioned - as well as a number of classics and big screen re-releases - and will announce tickets on sale in the coming weeks.”

Picturehouse says that, when Cinema City does reopen, it will have made a number of changes to comply with government guidance around COVID-19.

That will include: social distancing throughout the cinema, a limit number of seats in use, hand sanitiser being available, enhanced cleaning throughout the day and staggered film screenings to allow for safe entry and exit of the cinema.

There will also be protective screens at kiosks and extra training for staff.

They said: “We will monitor and adapt to this new situation as necessary and will continue to follow future advice from the relevant government agencies.

“We have all had a challenging few months and we thank you for your patience, ongoing support and passion for cinema.”

Elsewhere in Norwich, the Odeon cinema at Riverside is due to reopen on Saturday, July 4. Vue, which runs the cinema in Castle Quarter, has said it will begin to reopen its cinemas from Friday, July 10.