BLOCKBUSTER movie Top Gun: Maverick helped boost Everyman Media's revenues by 62 per cent last year as Brits continued to embrace cinema-going as an affordable luxury.

The company, which has 14 of its 38 cinemas in greater London, yesterday reported revenue of £79.7m in its annual update to December - a figure significantly up from the previous Covidimpacted year of £49m.

Its earnings before tax were also significantly up on 2021 to £14.5m, an increase of almost 75 per cent, as higher ticket prices helped the firm recover from the pandemic.

Everyman, which operates 38 venues across the UK with a total of 130 screens, said its average ticket price was up 2.6 per cent on the previous year, while the cost of food and drinks at its venues also rose.

Shares in the firm, which have tumbled over the last year, jumped on the news, finishing up 8.72 per cent yesterday.

The company, known for venues in Baker Street, Borough, Broadgate and Canary Wharf, said its uptick in earnings came despite Covidrelated delays in film production, meaning a reduced number of films on offer.

Movies such as Top Gun:

Maverick helped bring out cinemagoers, in a return to "business as usual" for the company.

Everyman Media Group chief executive Alex Scrimgeour said the results were proof that "the UK's appetite for film and the Everyman brand remains reassuringly strong".

"Whilst Tom Cruise's much lauded Top Gun: Maverick marked a symbolic post-Covid return to business as usual, there have been other challenges to face along the way caused by global instability and associated inflation," he added.

"To therefore exceed financial expectations is a credit to the incredible teams in our venues and head office."

(c) 2023 City A.M., source Newspaper