Route 66 Drive In Cinema

I can’t believe there’s been a cinema this close to where I live and I’d never heard about it until a friend got a Groupon deal. Cue three of us heading here on a clear (and ruddy freezing) February night to check it out.
Now I’m certainly no expert of the subject, but I don’t think the UK really took to drive in ‘movie theatres’ like our American cousins did — it’s often too wet and chilly and most of us don’t own a convertible. Anyway, Manchester has one! And it’s supposedly been here for quite some time.
After a few disconcerting minutes trying to find it amongst the distribution warehouses of Trafford Park, we spotted the queue of cars and then the gigantic screen.
The process is pretty simple: you book online, show your reference number when you arrive, get told the FM frequency to tune your car radio in to, park up and enjoy the show.
You’re allowed to bring whatever food and drinks your heart desires (no alcohol for drivers, people). Your entry includes two small tubs of salted popcorn and two cans of soft drink — we divvied these between the three of us along with what can only be described as an E-​number-​filled buffet of depravity.
If you fancy hot food, they’ll even order a Domino’s Pizza and hand deliver it to your car for you.
It was refreshing to be able to enjoy the film, whilst being able to pass the odd comment or related factoid to your mates and make rustling noises opening packets without any fear of being shushed at.
If the thought of sharing a cinema experience with *shudder* The General Public fills you with dread, then this is for you. Plus it cost us only £13 for the car, which is a barg compared to the multiplexes.
Tip: keep your headlights off at all times as it’s highly annoying to everyone else.

The place is pretty easy to find — just look for the cars queuing to get in. The film started over 20mins late, maybe because it wasn’t dark enough for the film to be visible on the screen. It was fun to watch the film and listen to the sound on the radio, but the seats of our car were not so comfy after an hour and we both fidgeted a lot. We’d go again, but to see a shorter film as we didn’t get home until 1.30am!