Our Story

Palace Cinemas traces its origins to the 1960s, when a town hall in Noble Park, Victoria, was rented to screen films for small but enthusiastic audiences. By the late 1970s, the Palace Theatre on Bourke Street had become our flagship venue, and ultimately gave us our Palace name. The Metro Malvern on Glenferrie Road, along with a brief chapter operating the Sandringham Drive-In, also helped shape the DNA of Palace.

While cinemas faced a challenging period throughout the 1980s, Palace Home Video flourished. In the early 1990s, our focus returned to the big screen with the addition of Dendy Brighton and Balwyn Cinema in Melbourne, followed by the Verona and Academy Cinemas in Paddington, Sydney.

In the decades since, Palace has continued to grow, expanding throughout Melbourne and Sydney and establishing cinemas in Brisbane, Byron Bay, Ballina, Canberra and Perth. Along the way, we have also proudly played a role in preserving some of Australia’s most treasured cinemas, including Melbourne’s iconic Astor Theatre, the country’s longest continuously operating single-screen cinema, and the historic Regent Cinemas in Ballarat.

Today, Palace Cinemas encompasses 210 screens across 25 locations nationally. Each cinema has its own distinct character, combining an expertly curated selection of films, festivals and special events with sophisticated comfort and a sense of occasion.

At heart, Palace has always been about a love of cinema, from those first screenings for a handful of passionate filmgoers in Noble Park to audiences across Australia today. More than 60 years later, we still believe there’s nothing quite like seeing a great film on the big screen, and we love sharing that experience with you.