Thomas Anderson, the owner of Empire Cinemas has purchased Pearl & Dean for £1. With this acquisition, he has become the second largest seller of film advertising.

65-year old Anderson owns Empire Cinemas and Ward Anderson Cinema chain, the largest in Ireland. Ward Anderson was found by his father Kevin, who established the business with his half brother Leo Ward in late 1940s. The group made the first purchase in 1955.

As per sources, the group firmed its foot in the UK with purchase of 11 UCL sites in 2005 along with the Empire in London's Leicester Square and operations in Glasgow and Newcastle. In the year 2006, it acquired six more cinemas from Cineworld.

However, Mr. Anderson has not limited his feet to cinemas alone, he also has an interest in the Oil & Gas sector as the Chairman of Aim-listed Oil Exploration Group circle Oil and Lansdowne Oil & gas.