UK box office earned over 1bn pounds in 2011

London, Feb 1 (ANI): UK cinema box office takings reportedly passed the 1 billion-pound mark for the first time last year, according to the British Film Institute (BFI).

Figures show earnings increased by 5 percent to 1.04 billion pounds, helped by the success of films including 'The King's Speech' and 'The Inbetweeners'.

The highest grossing movie of the year was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 taking 73 million pounds.

Total admissions were also up 1.4 percent from 2010 with 171.6m tickets sold.

The figures also show that independent British film recorded its best year in terms of market share with 13.5 percent, the BBC reported.

Market share for all British films at the UK box office, including independents and those shot in the UK but financed from abroad, reached 36.2 percent, up from 24.0 percent in 2010.

The top 20 grossing films in 2011 were:

1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 - 73.1 million pounds

2. The King's Speech - 45.7 million pounds

3. The Inbetweeners Movie - 45 million pounds

4. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides - 32.9 million pounds

5. The Hangover 2 - 32.8 million pounds

6. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 - 30.7 million pounds

7. Transformers: Dark of the Moon - 28.1 million pounds

8. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows - 23.1 million pounds

9. Bridesmaids - 23 million pounds

10. Arthur Christmas - 20.8 million pounds

Eight of the top 20 grossing films of the year were made in the UK.

The BFI said that the strong performance was driven by the popularity of both British independent films like 'The Inbetweeners' and blockbusters made in the UK with British talent, crew and services, such as the Potter series and 'Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows'. (ANI)