The MediCinema would be built in a former lecture theatre in the Manchester Royal Infirmary and would be open to all of the trust’s sites, on its Oxford Road campus.
It would feature cinema-style seating, room for wheelchairs, hospital beds and medical equipment, and inclusive features such as subtitles, audio descriptions and sensory-friendly screenings.
Up to 260 films a year would be shown, supported by MediCinema nurses and trained volunteers, with capacity for personalised screenings for patients in particularly sensitive circumstances, a trust spokesperson said.
Kathy Cowell, chair of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, said they were “so very grateful to the hundreds of individuals, groups and businesses who have got us this far, particularly at such a busy and expensive time of year”.
The appeal has also been backed by Wayne and Coleen Rooney, comedian Jason Manford and players from Manchester United Football Club, including Senne Lammens, Ayden Heaven, Manuel Ugarte and Tom Heaton.
