A HAMPSHIRE company has unveiled plans to reopen an old cinema that stopped showing films more than 50 years ago.

Corintech wants to breathe new life into the former Regal Cinema in Shaftesbury Street, Fordingbridge, which has stood empty since a pottery business based in the building closed in 2012.

The £1.5 million scheme coincides with a campaign to reopen a disused cinema in nearby Ringwood.

Opened in 1933, the art deco-style building boasted almost 300 seats. It thrived for many years but closed in 1965 following a huge increase in the number of families with televisions.

Corintech is planning to convert part of the complex into eight studio flats in a bid to attract young electronics engineers fresh out of university.

The rest of the building will be turned into a 30-seat cinema and bar if the scheme is approved by New Forest District Council.

Corintech’s chairman, film buff Brian Currie, said: “We see this as an opportunity to restore an amenity that closed more than 50 years ago.

“Fordingbridge is a lovely little town but you only have to look at the number of shops for rent to realise that it’s seen better days.

“Re-opening the cinema would be a real morale booster. The initial response to our proposal has been extremely positive – there’s is a real excitement throughout Fordingbridge.”

The scheme follows a rise in the number of village film clubs that meet once a month.

Mr Currie added: “The Regal will also be a film club run by volunteers but it will be a proper cinema with curtains and sloping seats – it won’t be like sitting in a village hall.”

If the scheme is given the go-ahead the Regal will show its first films in September or October.

The town mayor, Cllr Malcolm Connolly, said: “The people of Fordingbridge are quite excited at the prospect of the cinema re-opening.

“It’s good that the building is due to be retained, not knocked down for housing. People also like the fact that the facade is being kept the same as it was 50 years ago.”

As reported in the Daily Echo, Ringwood’s old cinema – also called the Regal – could also reopen.

Residents have launched a campaign aimed at ensuring that the former nightclub in Market Place is turned back into an family entertainment venue.

They are opposing plans by Development Securities to demolish itthe auditorium to make way for new stores linking the site to the Furlong shopping centre.