Cinema box offices in Wales saw a record-breaking summer this year as audiences sought to shrug off fears of recession and the damp of a wet summer.
Driven by the success of films from Mamma Mia! to Wall-E and The Dark Knight, local audiences headed for the movies on an unprecedented scale.
Over 3,580,243 went to local cinemas in Wales during June-August, a 6.4 per cent increase on the same period in 2007.
Reflecting the national pictures, where the summer saw over 53.6m cinema admissions - the highest figure for at least 35 years - audiences in Wales confirmed that during times of economic gloom, the public turn to the cinema to cheer themselves up.
"Box office over the summer has at times been exceptional," commented Lesley Jones, marketing manager of the Torch Theatre.
"We are providing affordable entertainment which allows the local community to forget, for a while at least, about the economic doom and gloom.
"As a result they have been enjoying evenings in front of the big screen in huge numbers and we are hoping that a strong autumn line-up - including the new Bond film Quantum of Solace - will ensure that customers keep on coming."