Newcastle's Tyneside Cinema Wins Gold at the North East England Tourism Awards

Newcastle's Tyneside Cinema is delighted to have won the Gold award for Large Visitor Attraction at the North East England Tourism Awards. The top prize was shared jointly with the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Arts at the awards ceremony on Thursday 31 January at the Sage Gateshead, and the winners will now be entered into the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, the highest accolade in English tourism. Housed in its spectacular Grade II listed building in the heart of Newcastle, the Tyneside is one of the UK's leading independent cinemas and a celebrated heritage attraction. Opened in 1937 and lovingly restored to preserve the grandeur of its original art deco design, the Cinema shows films from around the world across three state-of-the-art screens, and it is also home to a ground-breaking digital arts programme Pixel Palace and a permanent heritage display illustrating the rich history of this important building. 2012 was an exceptional year for Tyneside Cinema, which welcomed record numbers of visitors through its doors. In addition to its regular film programme, the Cinema hosted a diverse and vibrant programme of special events throughout the year, including live music performances, digital art exhibitions and sold-out marathon all-nighter film screenings. Last year Tyneside Cinema also launched Time Machine, a pioneering education experience for 9-10 year olds which helps children learn about the history of the Cinema, whilst engaging with key areas of the national curriculum. In July, Time Machine won three awards at the 2012 Big Chip Awards which recognise excellent use of digital technology, having already been winners at the Learning on Screen Awards in London in April, and the Northern Royal Television Society awards in February. Mark Dobson, Chief Executive at Tyneside Cinema said, "We are thrilled to have won the Gold award for Large Visitor Attraction and it is a particular honour to receive this accolade in what has been a truly outstanding year for the Tyneside, when more people than ever before came to enjoy our fantastic film and events programme, and learn about the history of cinema and the heritage of this incredible building.” The North East England Tourism Awards are the region's largest awards celebrating the achievements of the tourism industry, and were delivered this year by the destination management and marketing organisation NewcastleGateshead Initiative in partnership with Northumberland County Council. The 2012 awards were presented by BBC Look North presenter Carol Malia at a ceremony at the Sage Gateshead on Thursday 31 January. The Gold award for Large Visitor Attraction was shared jointly between Tyneside Cinema and BALTIC, with Wallington Hall in Northumberland winning Silver and the Bowes Museum in County Durham taking Bronze. For more information about the North East Tourism Awards and to see the full list of winners, please go to www.northeasttourismawards.com. To find out more about Tyneside Cinema and see the full film and events programme please visit www.tynesidecinema.co.uk.