Roman Polanski once said that 'cinema should make you forget you are sitting in a theatre' and there are plenty of places to see films outdoors this summer across East Anglia.
Caxton, Beccles
Norwich-based Pop Up Pictures have won a reputation for truly memorable cinema experience in East anglia's most unique places and spaces, and this summer they are again presenting 'The Great Outdoor Cinema Club' – 24 screenings at eight locations, including this return visit to Beccles. They will be showing The Lost Boys (June 29), Top Gun (June 30) and Grease (July 1). Tickets £12, £8 teens (film age certificate applies). popuppictures.co
Holkham Hall, Norfolk
Holkham hosts a weekend of open air cinema as Luna Cinema turn the beautiful grounds of the walled garden into the ultimate setting for two nights of classic cinema under the stars. On June 30 prepare to do the timewarp as they screen cult classic, The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Then on July 1, the Pink Ladies and T Birds will be on screen with Grease, starring the legendary pairing of John Travolta and Olivia Newton John as Danny and Sandy. Doors open both evenings at 7.45pm, with the film from 9.15pm. holkham.co.uk/event/open-air-cinema
Audley End/Hylands House, Essex
Luna Cinema Club, probably the country's leading open air film screening experts, will be bringing outdoor cinema magic to Audley End House and Gardens at Saffron Walden and Hylands House near Chelmsford. They run a huge programme of events all across the country every summer, so they know how to capture the magic of films under the stars. At Audley End they are showing Top Gun (July 7) and Dirty Dancing (July 8), while at Hylands, they will screen La La Land (July 12), Breakfast at Tiffany's (July 13) and Grease (July 14). Tickets £14.50, £10 under-15s. thelunacinema.com
Waterloo Park, Norwich
This sumer Pop Up Pictures are back in their home city of Norwich but with this brand new location for their Great Outdoor Cinema Club. Waterloo Park in the north city will play host to their outdoor screen showing some 1980s favourites including Steven Speilberg family classic ET - The Extra Terrestrial (July 13), The Lost Boys (July 14) and Dirty Dancing (July 15). Screenings here are limited to just 400 adults per night, so quick now to avoid missing out. Films start after sunset, take a chair or blanket. Tickets £12, £8 teens. popuppictures.co
Kentwell Hall, Suffolk
This romantic moated redbrick Tudor mansion at Long Melford hosts a full programmne of outdoor entertainment including open air cinema. This year's programme includes Thelma & Louise (July 15). It will be shown on a 28ft inflatable screen with HD projectors and big sound. Live pre-film entertainment includes 'Outdoor Karaoke'. There will also be further screenings on August 4 and September 15, still to be announced. Tickets £12 online advance/£15 on the night (book on 01787 310207. kentwell.co.uk
Essex Outdoor Cinema
All round evangelists of outdoor cinema parties, Essex Outdoor Cinema are again hosting numerous screenings in venues across the county this summer. They will be bringing Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge to the wonderful Maldon Promenade (July 21, £8) and comedy Bridesmaids to the beautiful RHS Hyde Hall in Chelmsford (July 22, £12), and at the same venue Grease (September 9, £12). They will also be showing Shawshank Redemption to Laye Marney Tower, Colchester in late-summer, early-autumn (September 10, £12). Take a picnic and there will be lots of pre-film fun too. Full listings at essexoutdoorcinema.com
Plantation Gardens, Norwich
The San Miguel Picturehouse Pop-Up returns to Plantation Gardens for two weekends of outdoor cinema featuring eight classic films shown in the idyllic auditorium under the stars. As settings go, this one is pretty special – a Grade II English Heritage-registered Plantation Garden tucked behind a wall off Norwich's Earlham Road. The line-up begins with Ridley Scott's sci-fi horror classic Alien (July 20), followed by Ghostbusters (July 21) , Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie (July 22) and Grease (July 23). Then later in the summer there will be screenings of La La Land (August 17), Clueless (August 18), Hunt for the Wilderpeople (August 19) and the Hitchcock classic North By Northwest (August 20). picturehouseblog.co.uk
Fritton Lake, Great Yarmouth
At the end of next month, Pop Up Pictures will be bringing outdoor cinema back to Fritton Lake, near Great Yarmouth, once again, where spectators can enjoy 1980s favourites Big (July 27), Gremlins (July 28) and Dirty Dancing (July 29) under the stars. Adult tickets are £12, teens are £8 and children are £6. One child per paying adult may go free. Food, including wood fired pizza, hotdogs, nachos, candy and popcorn will be available on the night.
Wimple Estate, Cambridgeshire
This National Trust property has just be named the obest picnic spot in East Anglia, so it should be the perfect place to also sit back and watch films this summer. The line-up set to light up the outdoor big screen starts with animated film Secret Life of Pets (July 29), then Baz Luhrmann's groundbreaking Romeo & Juliet (July 29), with Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio. There will also be a special 'Before Sundown' showing of the original Alice in Wonderland (July 29), and musical La La Land (July 30). Tickets £10, £5.50 children, £1 under-3s. sundowncinema.co.uk/venue/wimpole
Holywells Park, Ipswich
Holywells is a beautiful open space, with stunning trees and ponds, but also a green hub for the community so it's the perfect location for summer cinema screenings under the stars. Pop Up Pictures are set to visit in August with more of their 1980s favourites. The line-up includes ET - The Extra Terrestrial (August 3), more Steven Speilberg with Jaws (August 4) and Dirty Dancing (August 5). Tickets £12, £8 teens. One child per paying adult may go free. Wood fired pizza, hotdogs, nachos, candy and popcorn available on the night. popuppictures.co
Abbey Gardens, Bury St Edmunds
The jewel in Bury St Edmunds outdoor crown, Abbey Gardens attracts over a million visitors every year. The six hectare park is on the site of a former Benedictine Abbey, once a power house of medieval England. So it an atmospheric location for summer outdoor cinema. Pop Up Pictures are set to visit in August with ET - The Extra Terrestrial (August 10) and Dirty Dancing (August 12). Tickets £12, £8 teens. One child per paying adult may go free. The usual range of food and popcorn are on sale, so no picnics. popuppictures.co
Blickling Hall, Norfolk
The Summer Nights Film Festival at the National Trust's Blickling Hall will see a screening of the Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore favourite Ghost (September 15), while Jake and Elwood Blues are putting the band back in music-comedy classic The Blues Brothers (September 16). Tickets are £13, £9 under-12s, under-5s free (book on 01332 290606). You can also pre-order hampers when booking. summernightsfilm.co.uk/venues/blickling-estate
Castle Park, Colchester
Pop Up Pictures visit Colchester where they will be showing The Goonies (September 7), Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction (September 8) and Grease (September 9). Tickets £12, £8 teens (not Pulp Fiction as its an 18 certificate). One child per paying adult may go free. No picnics. popuppictures.co
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here