Cinema admissions in July rose by 33.7% compared with the same month a year earlier, taking it up to 21.8m admissions, according to new figures released by the Cinema Advertising Association.
The previous record for monthly cinema admissions was 19m in February 2002 on the back of animated children's film, 'Monsters Inc', and George Clooney crime caper, 'Ocean's 11'.
July was the biggest month of the year for Hollywood blockbuster releases such as 'The Simpsons Movie' and 'Transformers'. The week in which these two films were launched, commencing July 27, posted the second-highest week for admissions on record, with 6.2m people visiting the cinema.
Other films to draw big audiences in July included the fifth instalment of the Harry Potter franchise, 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix', and 'Shrek the Third'.
Harry Potter was the most popular movie in July, grossing over £38m, followed by 'Shrek the Third' with £31.5m and 'The Simpsons Movie' with £16.9m. 'Die Hard 4.0', starring Bruce Willis as New York cop John McClane pulled in £13m.
The new record comes in the wake of a significant uplift in total admission figures for the year, which increased 11.3% year on year to 98.7m.
Online auction house, eBay, was the top cinema spending advertiser in July, with £1.31m, followed by Red Bull with £1.27m and the Ford Motor Company with £1.26m.
Automotive was the top spending advertiser category, with over £4.5m, followed by entertainment and media, and telecommunications.
Adam Mills, sales director at Carlton Screen Advertising, said: "This is the industry's most successful month to date, and we expect to see the public continue its love affair with cinema throughout 2007 and well into 2008."
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