Two teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of arson after a blaze broke out at a former cinema.

Fire crews were called to reports of rubbish alight at the empty Odeon in St George’s Place, Canterbury, shortly after 6pm yesterday.

Crews wearing breathing apparatus extinguished a small fire, before using a high-pressured fan to clear the building of smoke.

A fire service spokesman said: “No injuries were reported and it is believed the fire was started deliberately.”

Meanwhile, police confirmed this morning a 16-year-old boy and a 15-year-old boy had been arrested on suspicion of arson.

They have since been bailed pending further enquiries.

The theatre – once the city’s primary cinema – closed during the pandemic and has remained so ever since, despite hopes it could be revived.

The site has since been earmarked for 50 new homes.

It first opened in 1933 but has recently been usurped by the arrival of a new multiplex, Curzon Riverside.