Cineworld Newport Information

Mo Williams is the General Manager at Cineworld Newport. Since the very beginning of thebestof Newport, he has been an avid supporter of our cause: To get the message out to the people of Newport that it’s vitally important for them to support their local businesses! thebestof recognises that Newport has a tough-enough battle in it’s fight to survive the seemingly never-ending recession, and that it too, needs the support of local businesses to help us, to help them!  We very much appreciate his continued support, and count him as a true friend and ally. Here, Mo tells us a little bit more about ‘the man behind the scenes’. Please follow the links to the CINEWORLD website, to find out what’s on, and when!

‘I’ve always loved films and always loved cinema.  Not many people can say that they have the job that they dreamt of doing when they were a child but in my case it’s true.  I’ve been doing it since I left college, far too many years ago, and in that time I’ve seen many changes in the industry. I started in a high street cinema in Bristol as a part time usher.  It only had two screens and it only opened in the evening and I vividly remember selling ice cream from a tray during the interval.  In truth it was a bit of a fleapit and was already in sad decline.

It is so different to the site I now manage, which offers the very latest in Digital Technology to present film the way it is meant to be shown.  It also allows us to show alternative products such as Live Sport, Live Theatre and even Opera! Our stadium seating and large screens mean that we are also able to host meetings and even large conferences. I feel privileged to work with a fine team who are all passionate about film. Luckily for us so are our customers, which is why our ‘Unlimited Card’ is so popular.  For me this has been the biggest change in the industry and I am delighted to be working for the only film exhibitor that offers this great deal. The best way of describing it is that paying for a film each time you come to the cinema is Pay for View, whereas having an Unlimited card is paying by subscription.  If you only visit the cinema twice a month you will save yourself a lot of money and with all the added benefits, such as unique preview screenings and local discounts, it is an essential card for all lovers of film.

In my time in cinemas I’ve worked all over the country but being Welsh, I jumped at the chance to work in Newport when the cinema opened in 1997.  It was shortly after my first daughter Bethan had been born and I was very keen for her, and later her sister Catrin, to grow up able to speak Welsh.  We’ve put down strong roots in Gwent and I see no reason to ever leave, especially as I am also a passionate supporter of the Newport Gwent Dragons.

Over the past few years Newport has been through some tough times but I am confident that good times are around the corner. The Glan Llyn development which is bringing over 2,000 homes to the old Llanwern Steelworks site situated directly behind the cinema, is an obvious example.  As are the exciting plans for the retail park on which we trade. I believe that we are ideally located to benefit from both these changes. We are already well placed to serve the needs of the people of Newport, especially with the large amount of free parking spaces we can offer our customers.

The future of Gwent and Newport in particular is bright and we look forward to playing our part in helping with the re-generation.’