We chose the Showcase cinema on the basis of it being the most accessible, without flights of stairs to climb, and some of the screens had recliners. It did require a drive to get there, but one of our number was willing to drive every week, and has done so ever since. As I had done the research to find the cheapest, most accessible cinema, and knew all the details of the booking system, I started sending out details of the films available, and the others responded with their preferences, and I then booked the tickets, and have done so ever since. And so our little ‘cinema club’ of four oldies came into being, and has remained intact ever since.
We all have different tastes when it comes to our preferences, but we are a fairly amenable group, and usually manage to find something we are all prepared to go and see, although occasionally, only three of us go. Sometimes, other things are happening in our lives, and we don’t go that week, or hot weather might mean we go in the evening, and not during the day, but we have largely gone most weeks.
In January 2026, I began to record our visits in a very informal way (not reviews, but more just a write-up of our visit). These can be found on a site that now serves as an archive of writing that I have shared prior to the existence of this new place, and all of that writing can be found here.
As Tiny Times comes into existence, I would like to continue that very informal writing here. And as it is my intention to include contributions from AI within Tiny Times, I will aim to include some more focused summaries of reviews for each film, going forward, leaving only Mark Kermode’s specific comments behind, particularly as he does not always review the films we choose to see.
Thus, despite bringing this new site into existence, I am also going to go forward, continuing with some of the old alongside some of the new.
Alongside the ongoing attendance of cinema club at The Showcase, I sometimes attend the newer Odeon cinema (since February of 2026). When I do, I will also aim to record those visits to the cinema, too.
I want to say that this is a new era for cinema club, but really we are (I am) just adapting to new circumstances, as cinema club just continues on.
Fraser
AI Contribution: Claude transformed my word document into this web page on my behalf.