Marvern Cinema in Worchester, UK has replaced all of its original 17 inch wide seats with 21 inch wide seats because cinema-goers can no longer squeeze into the old model. (Photo: Google Maps)

One of the oldest cinemas in Britain has been forced to replace its seats for the first time in almost 100 years because people can no longer fit into them.

Marvern Cinema in Worchester has replaced all of its original 17 inch wide seats with 21 inch wide seats because cinema-goers can no longer squeeze into the old model.

This has also meant the veteran cinema, which opened in 1885, has had to reduce it’s capacity by 40 seats to accommodate the upgrade.

“It’s a fact that our hips are getting slightly wider so we have had to act to making it a more comfortable experience for cinema-goers,” chief executive of Malvern Theatres Nic Lloyd told the Daily Mail.

“The seats were just not right for modern society.

“We haven’t had anyone get stuck but we know it can happen and we’re aware of the changes that have been made to things like aeroplane seats.

“We did quite a bit of research and looked at what other cinemas had done and these new ones are the standard size in cinemas now.

“If we are to compete with the multiplex cinemas we need to offer the level of comfort people have come to expect even though it means losing 40 seats,” she added.

A recent study found that women’s waist sizes have increased by an average of seven inches since the 1950’s.

In 1951 the average woman’s waist was 27 inches whereas today the average women’s waist measures 34 inches – an increase of more than 25 percent.

A massive 66 percent of Irish men are considered overweight or obese in Ireland, as are 50.9 percent of Irish women.

This is well in excess of the western European average of 47.6 percent.

In 2012 Airbus revealed it would add two-inches to some of its aircraft seats to make room for larger passengers.

Online Editors