About Us | The Big Picture

We are a global leading independent leisure consultancy. We transform places through creating experiences.

The Big Picture comprises a team of experts with hands-on experience of delivering successful projects in over 30 countries globally.

Leisure provides important cultural and economic benefits, bringing jobs and vitality to towns and cities. As a destination for people to come together and be inspired, it is a catalyst for regeneration.

For us, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach; all markets and developments are different, and we work with clients to get the best outcome. We are constantly creating new ideas to deliver global best practice for clients.

We look at the bigger picture. Our experience in placemaking means the impact of leisure is felt by surrounding communities and businesses, reaching far beyond its immediate location.

The Big Picture drives a modern successful development through all stages including:

Location Evaluation | Competition Analysis | Business Planning

Optimisation of Footfall & Revenue | New Market Development

Space Planning | Design | Layout

Fit out Project & Cost Management | Ongoing Management Services

Leisure, F&B and Respective Zone, Precincts & the Retail Merchandising Mix

Together with full operations, recruitment, training, and management support, the TBP team can support from concept through to launch and successful operation.

Judith Querfurth

John Sullivan

Mike Thomson

Keith Pullinger

Mike Thomson’s background is both operational and commercial. His expertise is in developing commercial strategies for cinema and leisure owners, operators or developers. As a Director at Virgin, UGC Cinemas and Cineworld, Mike headed up the combined marketing, film programming and retail functions, developing fully integrated commercial strategies, including the development and launch of the ‘Unlimited’ card – the UK’s first, and largest, cinema subscription scheme.

Before working in the cinema industry Mike held senior executive positions at major retail companies. The combination of retail and cinema knowledge means Mike is uniquely positioned to help developers, shopping centre managers and investors on delivering integrated entertainment offers within malls or town centres.

Mike has worked in numerous countries across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Nordics, with particular focus on the emerging Eastern European and Gulf Region markets over the last ten years. Mike was instrumental in setting up muvi cinemas in KSA, as well as advising KNCC on repositioning its business in Kuwait.

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+44 (0) 7894 480 669

John is a longstanding cinema and leisure expert and has acted in a senior development and management capacity on numerous retail, leisure and residential schemes throughout Australia, Asia, Europe and the UK.

Recently John has been the driving force behind the successful development, launch and ambitious roll out of Saudi Arabia’s first homegrown and No.1. cinema chain Muvi Cinemas, resulting in 21 successful muvi cinema openings in the last 5 years.

In 2002, John and Keith Pullinger set up a leisure consultancy group, focusing on leisure and cinema anchored projects working with developers and governments to create innovative and exciting leisure destinations and is continually ahead of the curve with a forward-thinking approach. Employing this strategy, TBP consistently demonstrates their market leading abilities with commercially viable developments.

Together with the TBP team, John has created landmark destinations including Eye (Galway), Odyssey (Belfast), Roxy Boxpark (Dubai), The Light Cinemas (UK), Grand Cinema (Bucharest). Our relationships with developers have led to exciting locations and leading to household brands e.g. Vue (Westfield, London), Showcase Watermark (Southampton), Odeon Luxe (Leeds), Everyman (Chelmsford) and Picturehouse (Prescot).

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with John

+44 (0) 7768 013 702

Judith joined The Big Picture in 2013 as a Consultant. With a BA in Communications she held several roles as a Communications Consultant for various companies including ING Real Estate and Siemens in the Netherlands. Her main focus has been on delivering wide-ranging support on all TBP projects but in particular delivering comprehensive reports for Developers,

Local Authorities and Asset Managers on cinema and leisure provision in the UK. In addition, Judith manages all financial aspects and day-to-day running of our business.

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with Judith

+44 (0) 7807 013 265

Across these territories, he has been responsible for developing over 40 cinema complexes with more than 300 screens.

He was co-founder of The Light in 2007 and is busy developing the next generation of venues for the ever-changing leisure market. The Light now operates thirteen sites in the UK with a pipeline to continue its expansion. Keith also co-founded The Big Picture specialist consultancy in 2007 and remains active in supporting that business globally.

Recent projects have been focussed on town and city centre regeneration, often working in partnership with local authorities to help re-energise shopping centres and town centres, supporting the development of a healthy evening economy. Council partnerships include Stockport, Runnymede, Cherwell, Swale, Breckland and Reigate & Banstead.

Expanding out from cinema, the new generation of Light complexes include a range of supporting leisure offers such as bowling, mini golf and climbing together with a high-quality food and bar offer.

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with Keith

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

Jordi Wientjes

Andy Bush

Kathryn Smith

James Milligan

Andrew Pannell

Iain Mitchell

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with Keith

Iain Mitchell – Associate Consultant

Iain brings over 30 years of senior commercial property experience to TBP, with a career spanning some of the UK's most significant retail and mixed-use destinations. As Commercial Director and UK and Ireland Management Board member at Hammerson, he held full accountability for a portfolio generating approximately £170m in annual rental income, leading all leasing and repositioning activity across the estate.

Iain has particular expertise in repurposing underperforming and vacant space into income-generating mixed-use destinations. He has spent much of his career doing the hard part, repositioning anchor units, restructuring tenant mixes and leading major developments through from strategy to opening.

Iain knows how landlords and asset managers think, and how to bridge the gap between a retail or leisure concept and a signed lease. He brings the commercial property relationships and expertise to help clients turn their ambitions into reality.

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

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with Keith

Andrew Pannell – Associate Consultant

Andrew Pannell is our Associate Consultant Australia. He assists clients through all stages of their journey -from early economic scoping and due diligence to start-up planning, financial and operational modelling, strategy development, and site acquisition.

Andrew offers tailored guidance to help businesses navigate the complexities of the Australian market. His experience in developing dynamic strategies and building creative, high-performing teams has enabled both start-ups and established organisations to grow and succeed in highly competitive leisure environments.

With experience working across five continents, Andrew brings a global perspective to every engagement and welcomes the opportunity to support businesses on their journey, wherever they are.

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

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James Milligan – Associate Consultant

James Milligan is an award-winning entrepreneur and creative experience producer with over 15 years in the immersive entertainment and cinema industry. As co-founder of Backyard Cinema, he helped grow the company into one of London’s leading experiential brands, known for transforming film screenings into fully immersive events.

He now works as a consultant across the creative experience sector, partnering with venues, developers, and operators to design, launch, and scale innovative entertainment concepts that blend storytelling, hospitality and live experience.

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

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Kathryn Smith – Associate Consultant

With two decades in the cinema industry, Kathryn has built a reputation for managing and transforming some of the UK's most prestigious venues. She began her career running key sites for Odeon and Vue before being handpicked by Cineworld to lead Picturehouse Central, where she spent four years elevating the venue's profile and commercial success.

More recently, Kathryn led the mobilisation and launch of the brand-new Chiswick Cinema, a four-screen community venue. As Operations Director at Really Local Group, she oversaw four cinemas across London, building teams from the ground up and embedding each site within its local community through tailored film programming and regional food and drink.

With her passion for cinema, deep operational expertise and commitment to audience engagement, Kathryn continues to shape the future of community-focused cinema in the UK.

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

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with Keith

Andy Bush – Associate Consultant

Andy brings 40 years of leadership experience across leisure and hospitality, guiding businesses through operational transition, cultural change, and sustained commercial growth. He has led the integration of multisite venues into new organisational structures, built highperforming teams, and established clear operational standards that drive consistency and guestexperience excellence.

With a career grounded in strategic oversight, performance analysis, and handson operational understanding, Andy has managed complex venues, delivered major publicfacing events, and strengthened stakeholder relationships to support longterm success. His expertise in people leadership, customer engagement, and operational strategy continues to help leisure and hospitality businesses raise standards, improve performance, and navigate change with confidence.

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

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with Jordi

Jordi Wientjes – Associate Consultant

Achieving more with leisure - that's what Jordi, our Associate Consultant for the Benelux, makes happen for companies in real estate, cinema & leisure entertainment, holiday parks, hospitality, and retail. With over 30 years of experience and his international network, he transforms leisure businesses into profitable organisations and supports real estate locations in developing and operating compelling leisure destinations.

With his international experience Jordi has a deep understanding of what it takes to make these businesses profitable. He works with clients across the full journey - from concept development and plan reviews, through to operator selection, area development, and revitalisation - always keeping financial goals and operational realities in balance.

As our Benelux Associate Consultant, he brings both strategic insight and hands-on experience to every project, helping organisations achieve measurable results in one of Europe's most dynamic leisure markets.

+44 (0) 7920 249 284

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