UK and Ireland cinema takings on post-pandemic high as A Minecraft Movie tops 2025 box office

The Guardian - World NewsCenter-LeftEN 2 min read 100% complete by Andrew PulverJanuary 7, 2026 at 03:46 PM

AI Summary

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The UK and Irish box office experienced its best year since the pandemic, reaching £1.07 billion in revenue in 2025, a 1% increase from 2024. While the number of film releases slightly decreased to 1,092, the number of "saturation" releases increased, indicating a strategic shift. "A Minecraft Movie" was the highest-grossing film in the UK and Ireland with £56.88 million, also topping the North American box office. The most successful British production was the fourth Bridget Jones film, "Mad About the Boy," earning £46.4 million. Event cinema also performed strongly, generating £44 million in revenue, with "Six the Musical" achieving a record for a stage production film.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

28 Years Later 40% Ne Zha 2 50% Bridget Jones 50% Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale ×260% Comscore ×270% A Minecraft Movie ×380% UK ×390% Ireland ×390%

Keywords

box office 100% cinema takings 90% uk and ireland 80% a minecraft movie 70% post-pandemic 60% highest-grossing film 50% film industry 50% event cinema 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Positive

Score: 0.30

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Source

The Guardian - World News

Political Lean

Center-Left (-0.40)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

United Kingdom

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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box office cinema takings uk and ireland a minecraft movie post-pandemic highest-grossing film film industry event cinema

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