London's cinemas are most expensive in Europe

An adult ticket for the Odeon in Leicester Square costs up to £17.50 compared with an average of £4.95 in 10 Continental capitals. Even London's suburban cinemas frequently charge £8 to £10 for adults.

The findings, from the London Assembly Liberal Democrats, come as Ken Livingstone promotes the 50th London Film Festival, which starts tomorrow.

The Mayor will be joined at a City Hall conference by Oscar-winning director Anthony Minghella, chairman of the British Film Institute, which organises the festival.

According to the Lib-Dems, the cost of seeing a film in the West End is far more expensive than similar European cinemas, where most tickets cost less than £5.

Dee Doocey, Lib- Dem culture spokeswoman on the assembly, said: " London topping the European price charts is just another case of 'rip-off ' Britain. Only here do you need to be earning almost as much as a Hollywood star to afford to see the latest flicks. Cinema used to be a popular and cheap form of entertainment but in London it's fast becoming a luxury few can afford."

Ms Doocey said London was now the world's third largest film-making centre, with 15 new British films opening at the festival. But she warned: "If young people can't afford to go to the cinema, by the time it reaches its next big anniversary, the London Film Festival might not be the showcase of British talent it is today."

The festival opens with the UK premiere of The Last King Of Scotland. Based on the award-winning book by Giles Foden, it tells the story of a fictional Scottish doctor who becomes the personal physician of the late Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.

There will also be a free event in Trafalgar Square at 7pm on 27 October, entitled A Portrait Of London. It will involve a series of "digital postcards" of the city and its people.

The Mayor, who is one of the festival's main funders along with his London Development Agency, is hosting a gala screening on Thursday and Friday of Venus, starring veteran actors Peter O'Toole and Leslie Phillips.

Ticket prices at the eight main venues being used for festival screenings average £10.26. The Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Place, which isn't participating, charges £1 for its "feelgood Fridays" and £4 for evening screenings.

WHAT YOU PAY IN...

Leicester Square, Odeon £17.50
Putney, Odeon £8.50
Copenhagen, Vester Vov Vov£6.32
Stockholm, Filmstaden Sergel£5.82
Athens, Trianon £4.70
Berlin, Imax £4.52
Brussels, Kinepolis £4.05
Rome, Warner Village £3.70
Lisbon, Lusomundo Vasco de Gama £3.37
Madrid, Circulo de Bellas Artes £2.70