One of Scotland’s prominent cinemas is facing closure after the owner of the building signalled plans to take back the site.

The Cineworld on Renfrew Street, Glasgow, is the tallest in the world and the building is one of the city’s most distinctive.

Cinema staff have been told of the owner’s plan by Cineworld which described the situation as “outside our control”.

Clydebankbridge Ltd purchased the site for £7m in May this year. The company is owned by Omniplex, an Irish cinema group which took over five Empire sites in 2023 – including one in Clydebank.

There has been no indication as to what the owner plans to do with the Renfew Street site, but the lease on the building was due to run until 2036. It appears the new owner is seeking to end this prematurely.

The cinema was built on the site of the Glasgow Apollo which was demolished in 1987. It opened as UGC in September 2001, standing 62m tall, with 18 screens across 12 storeys, and having a seating capacity of more than 4,200 people. Cineworld took over in 2005.

In the email to staff, which is signed by company directors Shaun Jones and Mark Whitty, the company states: “We have been informed by the building owners that they intend to take back our site at Glasgow Renfrew Street.

“If this is the case then it is likely that the Cinema would be closed and we would commence a consultation process with you to discuss available options.

“At this stage we have no further information or timescales that we are able to share with you but we wanted to ensure that you were aware of the situation at the earliest possible stage.

“This situation is outside of our control however, we acknowledge that this is an uncertain period for you and we will endeavour to ensure that you remain the first to know of any further developments.”

Cineworld shut six of its cinemas last year, including one in Parkhead.