Cinema chain Cineworld’s proposed acquisition of Picturehouse is to be further investigated by the Competition Commission in the Aberdeen, Bury St Edmunds and Cambridge areas where the acquisition is expected to result in a "substantial lessening of competition”. Cineworld may be told to sell off one of either its Picturehouse of Cineworld cinemas in these areas if the provisional findings are substantiated in the commission’s final decision in October.

Commenting on the announcement, Stephen Wiener, CEO of Cineworld, said: "We are disappointed that in these three locations we have been unable to convince the Competition Commission that Cineworld and Picturehouse are two fundamentally different businesses that could operate in the same area. Nevertheless the combination of the two businesses will remain strategically compelling, as our recent results showed clearly, and we are committed to continuing the expansion and investment into both."