IT sounds like it could be the plot from a traditional Ealing comedy film.

But church leaders have vowed to step up protests outside a local cinema after it defied their religious beliefs by announcing it will open every Sunday.

The cinema in Stornoway on Lewis, said it will permanently open on Sundays after a successful trial on the Sabbatarian island.

The three film trial, which was spread over three months, at An Lanntair had been met with protests by church groups.

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However protesters who demonstrated outside An Lanntair have warned they will continue to fight for the sanctity of the Lord’s Day if the trial turns into a permanent fixture.

Church elder Angus Macmillan of the Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) Stornoway, said:”An Lanntair, which means ‘lantern’ in Gaelic is putting the lights out on our island’s Christian heritage and it’s shameful.

“I think there’s been a significant support (for maintaining the Sabbath). Even people not from the Christian community are concerned about the cultural impact on their way of life.

“The majority of the population are opposed to this. We can’t see a significant demand and if An Lanntair decide to continue with this there will be other action. This is a publicly funded organisation. I would expect the point to be made through democratic channels and to the board of An Lanntair. We will not give up.”

Protests met the first films to be shown on Sundays in a public cinema on the Sabbatarian island.

But all of the 183 seats for Black Panther, Coco and Star Wars: Episode V111 - The Last Jedi - sold out.

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The Rev. David Fraser, of the Free Church of Scotland (Continuing) Stornoway, who led two of the protests, said:”I have been contacted by fellow Christians who are upset by this. You open one thing and you are putting pressure on other businesses to follow. It’s going to be a constant temptation. As Christians we believe sin is a breaking of the law and the fourth commandment is the hinge between a caring God and loving man.

“Those people who will break the Sabbath are breaking God’s law - they are guilty as sinners immediately but there’s forgiveness for those who change their minds. It’s morally reprehensible that people are trying to change traditional Lewis life here. There’s been an erosion of moral standards.”

An Lanntair is a major arts venue which also has Lewis’s only public cinema.

Teas and coffees have been available for sale at the centre during the trial, but the venue’s bar and restaurant remained closed.

Elly Fletcher, the chief executive of An Lanntair, said in September that a “significant majority” of those who responded to its survey were in favour of the Sunday trial.

But following board meeting it was decided that for operational reasons a trial was not possible then.

Now the board have said it plans to start Sunday opening “as soon as operationally possible.”

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David Green, the chairman of the board of An Lanntair, has defended the decision to open.

He said:”I fully understand the Sabbath issue but I also understand it is not up to us to impose one view on another. We are committed to diversity.

“No group can impose on any other group what they can do and what they cannot do.

“We have been really careful to do this in the least disruptive or offensive way. It is about a quite afternoon for families.”

Leisure facilities on the island have traditionally closed on Sundays in observance of the Sabbath.

Campaigners have even raised enough money to open Lewis’s public swimming pool and sports centre for a trial period on Sundays - only to be refused by the Western Isles Council.

The local authority said its decision not to open the site was for “operational reasons” and not a religious one.