PUB chain giant Wetherspoons has announced the closure of one of its south Essex sites, which is to be demolished, and also that it plans to build a new two storey venue to replace it in Basildon – but the company remains silent about its plans for the landmark State cinema site in Grays.

It's now six years since Wetherspoons brought the cinema site in the heart of Grays which was in a near derelict condition, with water entering the listed building through the roof.

The company instigated some remedial work and boarded it up and then applied for planning permission for a grandiose scheme

However, nothing materialised and that the planning permission, which was granted by Thurrock Council, expired. In May 2021 a film was released by intruders who had gained access to the building, showing the condition of it inside the hoardings.

In the summer of last year Wetherspoons submitted a second set of plans on a smaller scale and again they were granted. But nothing has happened since then.

A spokesperson for Wetherspoons confirmed that the site is still being maintained and that the company remains committed to the development of the cinema as a new venue, but no date has been set so far for work to commence.

Meanwhile in Basildon, Wetherspoons has announced that its town centre venue 'The Moon on the Square' is to close in September and be demolished. In its place a new £3 million pub will be created on a former shop site adjacent to the town centre's new cinema complex, part of a town centre redevelopment championed by Basildon Council which has reshaped the town centre as part of its regeneration plans.