Pah, EE is replacing Orange Wednesdays with a movie streaming discount

Deep down, I guess we all knew that Orange Wednesdays would one day come to an end. But the fact that Orange (later EE) customers could get two-for-one cinema tickets with a quick text was so fantastic and ran for so long (12 years!) that I guess we got complacent.

Then, to the country’s collective shock, the discount rug was pulled out from under us last month. When EE announced the change back in December, they promised they’d replace Orange Wednesdays with a new exclusive deal, and now they have. It’s just… not as good.

They’re offering the chance to stream a film from online movie provider Wuaki.tv every week for £1, saving around £2.50. Starting on 30 March, customers can text ‘film’ to 141 for a promotional code redeemable on the site Monday-Wednesday. You have two days to watch it, and the text costs 35p.

EE’s framing this as a reflection on the fact that streaming is more popular than ever, especially among smartphone-obsessed millennials, but it’s clearly just a lot cheaper for them.Don’t get me wrong: seeing a (fairly) recent film for a quid’s nothing to sneeze at. But the great thing about Orange Wednesdays was that they encouraged you to get out of the house instead of slumping in front of your computer/tablet/TV as usual. Maybe you’d even see some friends!

Now you’ll still get the chance to watch a hit film – from the Hunger Games series to Oscar-winning biopics like Dallas Buyers Club. It’ll just be a few months after it’s been in the cinema, and it’s hardly a selling point that could convince an avid film fan to switch contracts.