Empire Cinemas has collapsed into administration with the immediate loss of 150 jobs.
Six cinemas in the chain have closed, with a further eight under threat.
Administrators BDO said the impact of the Covid pandemic and the cost of living crisis had “significantly affected the companies’ business”.
Last month rival chain Cineworld, also fell into administration, hit by the pandemic and competition from streaming.
The Empire cinemas that closed on Friday are in Bishop’s Stortford, Catterick Garrison, Sunderland, Swindon, Walthamstow and Wigan.
The closures leave Sunderland and Wigan with no main cinema.
Meanwhile, the remaining sites in Birmingham, Clydebank, High Wycombe, Ipswich and Sutton, and the two Tivoli-branded venues in Bath and Cheltenham, will continue to trade as the administrators look for a buyer.
Staff apparently turned up for work at branches on Friday to find notes on windows explaining they were closing down, according to local media reports.
BDO said the cinemas employed a total of 437 staff across England and Scotland.
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