CINEMA is returning to Settle, 50 years after the closing titles last rolled in the town.

Four films will be shown at the Victoria Hall, with the first scheduled for June 7, as part of a pilot study to see if audiences support it.

Although the title has yet to be announced organisers hope it will be a recent release and carry a "PG" certificate to appeal to the widest audience.

Films will be screened monthly from June to September and audiences will be asked to comment on the best means of projection, the more traditional 35mm reel or DVD, digital video disc.

Ann Ambrose, who is working on the project, said: "We want to show a mixture of films to appeal to as wide an audience as we can and hopefully quite new releases.

"If little groups want to form to watch more specialised films they can hire the equipment from us.

"It has to be stressed that the first four films are a trial and we will be hoping to learn as much as possible from the experiences. There will be forms available for comments and suggestions and I hope people will bear with us if we don't get it right first time!

"We will be dealing with different methods of projection each time and therefore it will be a constant learning experience."

A recent demonstration of DVD proved impressive, with the image projected onto the back wall of the stage. Picture quality was good and organisers believe it will be easy to project the image onto a screen, up to a size of 17ft by 11ft, at the front of the stage.

The second film, planned for July 14, will be a DVD so audiences can compare it with the previous month's 35mm.

Questionnaires are already circulating parish councils, youth groups and church halls to help plan the type of films that could be shown and admission prices to ensure the cinema is viable. It will also be available in libraries, community buildings and by e-mail.

With cinema-goers currently forced to travel at least 16 miles, establishing the Victoria Hall as a venue for films could prove a real asset to the town. There are also hopes the cinema, known as The Ribblesdale Area Moving Picture Show, (TRAMPS) could tour North Craven bringing film to more isolated villages.

Settle's last cinema, the Nuvic, so called to distinguish it from the Victoria Hall, which was known as the Old Vic, was custom built in the building which is now home to the Co-Op. It was one of a number of cinemas owned and run by Arthur Graham, father of local councillor Beth Graham, the others were located in Kirkby Lonsdale, Ingleton and Sedbergh.

The first cinema in Settle, "The Picture House", run by Robert Dale, opened in 1915 in the Assembly Rooms in Bishopdale Court. A Mr R Haworth later took it over followed by Tanny Jerome.

In 1919 Mr Jerome, who was also a bookmaker, moved the "Picturedrome" as it was then called, to the Victoria Hall. The opening programme included "Bobbie: The Revue Girl" featuring Stewart Browne and topical news. Children under 14 were not admitted.

Mr Graham's uncle, John, took over in the Twenties and was in due course joined by his nephew. The cinema was so popular it opened on Christmas Day and Boxing Day and while it may not have been as comfortable as today's multiplexes it did feature double seats where local couples could do their courting!

The onset of television heralded the decline of cinema audiences and the Nuvic showed its last film in the Fifties.

The idea to bring cinema back to Settle came out of the Community Investment Prospectus which is working to boost facilities in the town.

Organised by a team of volunteers the cinema has been backed by a £200 grant from Craven District Council together with private donations.

The next meeting of TRAMPS is on May 27 at the Victoria Hall at 7.30pm.