Introducing the Ainsworth Cup

During the 100 Years of Community Cinema Gala held in Sheffield on 20 September 2025, Cinema For All announced the retirement of the Roebuck Cup.

The Roebuck Cup (or 'Robocop' as some winners have playfully nicknamed it) has been awarded annually for outstanding individual contribution to the film society movement. Recipients are often people or groups who have founded multiple film societies, supported Cinema For All and strengthened the movement as a whole. Their contributions have frequently had a national impact over many years. The Cup was donated by Charles Roebuck, a lifelong cinema enthusiast and national officer of the British Federation of Film Societies.

After almost 50 years, the Cup is now full — there is simply no room left to engrave new names. We are very proud to say that Roebuck Cup has been accepted as a donation to the Bill Douglas Cinema Museum in Exeter.

However, this important honour continues, and new cup is needed — one with a fresh name and a renewed dedication. At Cinema For All, we could think of no better name than... The Ainsworth Cup.

This new name honours our vice-president, Marjorie Ainsworth, who won the Roebuck Cup in 2016 and sadly passed away in August at the grand age of 103. It also pays tribute to her husband, Tom Ainsworth, who received the Cup in 1984. Marjorie was not only our vice-president but also president of the Manchester and Salford Film Society and widely regarded as the Queen of Community Cinema. Tom was a leading organiser in the North-West Group of the Federation of Film Societies and was highly active in community cinema from the 1930s until he passed away in 2007.

The new cup is a beautiful trophy, crafted in Sheffield by master silversmiths close to the Cinema For All office. It bears the inscription:

Awarded to those who epitomise the spirit of the volunteer-led cinema movement, who contribute significant time and energy to support it and strengthen it with their dedication to film and community. In loving memory of Marjorie and Tom Ainsworth.

With room for at least 50 engraved names, the Ainsworth Cup will remain part of the movement for another half century, a lasting tribute to the Ainsworths’ boundless love, energy and commitment to community and film.

Read Marjorie's top 50 films of all time here.