A few prime properties have a proper screening room – by which I mean a cinema-style room with ten or more luxury chairs where movies are projected onto a screen. I saw one a few months ago in a very large country house just outside London where the children (and adults) had access to this full movie experience which included a popcorn machine and an authentic vintage Wurlitzer jukebox. I was surprised that there was not a lady selling ice cream or an organist playing incidental music to the family and their friends before the main feature began.

While most prime properties do not now have a dedicated screening room (in the old sense) most do now either contain a room dedicated to TV, movies and other entertainment; most with large-screen TVs similar to a dedicated movie screening room. The way in which property is used and rooms allocated has changed significantly over the last 20 years. Where once a television used to be the focal point of a reception room, many luxury flats and houses in prime property areas now use the reception room space as a quieter area: a place to read, talk and to entertain friends and entertainment is hived off from this space.

With a changing lifestyle and the greater interaction between families, the kitchen has now become the focal point of many luxury houses. Where there are children, there is now a requirement for an area near to the kitchen where parents can be near enough to supervise, that provides the children with somewhere they can watch television or use a computer to play games, or provides a place for them to do their homework.  This importance of the kitchen as the hub of the home has created a trend for dedicated entertainment rooms, including screening rooms to be housed in location such as basements, converted bedrooms and other areas away from the kitchen and main reception room.

Once having a dedicated screening room was on many buyers’ wish list, but I would say it is not as important as it was; having a suitable space in a good location that allows the owners to create or modify for their own entertainment hub is much more important.

Simon Barnes

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