MANY a bride-to-be may dream of an elaborate film star-style wedding. Now, movie fans have the chance to come close – tying the knot in front of the silver screen at one of Britain’s oldest cinemas.

The Electric Palace in Harwich now has a licence to act as a venue for civil marriage ceremonies, with room in its ornate auditorium for as many as 250 guests.

The first wedding is booked for the 99-year-old Grade II listed building for June this year, with at least three more set to follow soon after.

Colin Crawford, licence holder for the cinema, said: “Somebody contacted us and asked if we did weddings. They said they wanted to have their wedding at the Electric Palace.

“We had to fill in all the forms and wait for any objections, then we got the licence.

“A number of very interesting buildings in Essex have now decided to do this. We have no idea how many bookings we will get.”

The Electric Palace is now licensed for civil weddings, civil partnership ceremonies, and child naming ceremonies – all non religious – and flowers can be brought in to decorate its interior.

The ceremonies will be staged at the front of the cinema’s stage.

Receptions can also be held there, but the cinema seating means formal sit-down meals are not possible.

However, being a picture house, it has something very special to offer – the chance to have live music, or even a film after the formalities have been completed.

Money raised by hiring the cinema for ceremonies will go towards its appeal to install a modern, digital projection system.

The Friends of the Electric Palace organisation, whose patron is movie actor Clive Owen, is leading the fundraising drive.

Mr Crawford added: “All the things we are doing at the palace will go towards that.

“We want the place to be used and the weddings are a very good way of supporting the cinema.”

Hazel Tahir, who is getting married at the Electric Palace this August, said: “Everyone we know in Harwich seems to think this is a wonderful, novel idea.

“My partner was born and bred in Harwich and we desperately wanted our wedding there. “What a novel thing to do – to get married in England’s oldest purpose-built cinema!”