Anyone fanatical about film will be excited to hear that ODEON has announced it is reopening its cinemas this month.

Britain's largest cinema chain plans to reopen doors on Monday May 17.

It announced that will be opening the "vast majority" of its 120 cinemas, including Richmond.

The cinema industry has been one of the worst-hit sectors during the pandemic, with many screens closed for extended periods or operating at reduced capacity.

Odeon managing director Carol Welch said: "We've all missed the magic that the cinema brings to movie watching."

There are a host of new 2021 film releases including Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, Fast & Furious 9, Marvel's Black Widow and the long-awaited Bond film No Time to Die.

No Time to Die was due to hit screens in April 2020 but has been repeatedly postponed, and will now debut globally on October 8.

ODEON will also screen Oscar-winning films that have been offered at no extra charge on screening services, such as Sound Of Metal (Amazon Prime) and Nomadland (Disney+).

Will the cinema be safe?

ODEON has implemented a number of measures to comply with Covid regulations.

Seats will be limited for each screening, and there will be unoccupied seats left inbetween parties to meet social distancing requirements.

Visitors will be expected to wear face masks but will be allowed to remove them in auditoriums when eating or drinking.

Show start times will be staggered to reduce queues.

Only contactless payment is accepted, ODEON will no longer accept cash, and cinemagoers are advised to pre-book seats online.