BFI IMAX Cinema

With a huge 26m x 20m screen, a 12,000 watt digital surround sound-system, and the special multi-dimensional technology of the IMAX format (short for Image Maximum), the BFI IMAX is, without doubt, the most technically impressive modern cinema in the country. Watching a film here is more like taking part in the action - travel from the depths of the ocean up to the far reaches of outer space via a series of spectacular 3D and 2D films. A large proportion of their 3D programme is dedicated to children's films, but by virtue of their powerful, technical brilliance many of these are just as fascinating for adults to watch. 3D documentaries and mainstream movies also add to the portfolio and, while the 2D films are by no means as visually dynamic they are still impressive on this, the largest screen in the UK. Right outside Waterloo Railway Station, within walking distance of the Southbank Centre and the London Eye, the location of the cinema couldn't be better even the fact that it currently acts as a kind of roundabout and can only be accessed via a series of illuminated tunnels is quite a coup. As you navigate the tunnels with their space-age blue lights on your way to the cinema you feel that the 'Living cinema experience' as already begun. The building itself is seven-storeys tall, glass-enclosed cylinder sucks you into its vortex welcoming you into a new world. Don't let the kids have all the fun.