Palace Electric Cinema

Palace Electric sits inside the Nishi building in NewActon, and it is an unusual function venue in that most of it is seating — eight fully licensed cinemas, any of which can be booked out privately. The biggest takes 193 guests, with 100-seat and 68-seat rooms for smaller groups, and each one comes with a lectern, microphone and stage lighting as standard.

That makes it a natural fit for anything with a stage moment: product launches and corporate presentations, awards nights, conferences, workshops, fundraisers and private screenings. There is plenty of floor space at the front of each cinema for a Q&A panel or a live performance, and the venue also hires rooms out for big-screen gaming and children’s parties.

The Prosecco Bar is where the standing part of an event happens — up to 200 guests, used for pre and post-film drinks on a normal night and hireable on its own for cocktail parties, engagements, networking events and Christmas functions. Its cinema-foyer styling, warm lighting and the architecture of the Nishi building give a photo booth a backdrop with some character to it, and a drinks reception in the bar either side of a screening is the layout most events here end up using.

The precinct helps too. NewActon puts galleries, restaurants and Ovolo Nishi within a short walk, there is parking on site and step-free access throughout, and it is close enough to the city centre that guests can get in and out easily.