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Previews and events
Join us for previews, talks and special screenings.
July
Niagara + recorded intro by film critic Christina Newland
In this sensational noir, Marilyn Monroe’s unsettling antics disturb a honeymooning couple.
UK Premiere of 4K Restoration: In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones + Q&A
A new restoration of this cult classic written by Arundhati Roy which captured the zeitgeist of student life in an architecture school in 1970s Delhi.
Sound and Vision: Films by Helen Petts + Helen Petts in conversation with musician Steve Beresford
A screening of films by the acclaimed filmmaker followed by a discussion of her work.
Aamir Khan in Conversation
Join one of India’s best-loved actors for a rare career conversation.
Clash by Night + intro by season curator Kimberley Sheehan
Marilyn Monroe impresses as a naïve small-town girl in Fritz Lang’s dark melodrama fraught with sexual tension.
The Killer + intro by Vicki Brown, co-founder of the MilkTea collective
In one of John Woo’s finest Hong Kong films, Chow Yun-fat excels as a charismatic hitman defined by an unshakeable a moral code.
We Crip Film Festival Opening Night: UK Festival Premiere: Joybubbles + pre-recorded intro from Rachael J. Morrison
A blind hacker genius creates a new subculture and chooses child-like wonder in this astounding documentary.
European Festival Premiere: Lone Wolves + pre-recorded intro from writer and actor Matt Foss
In this knockout indie comedy, an impeccably planned DIY self-insemination operation between old friends causes more than one kind of discharge.
We Crip Film Festival: Shorts Programme: It’s Not You, It’s Ableism + Q&A
This short film showcase is a vibrant and eclectic collection of disability stories and filmmaking.
We Crip Film Festival Closing Night: World Premiere: D-Punk + panel discussion
A raw, defiant documentary where punk and disability collide – challenging norms, reclaiming space, and rewriting who gets to be seen and heard.
Some Like It Hot + intro
Marilyn Monroe sizzles opposite Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in Billy Wilder’s genre-melding comic masterpiece.
UK premiere of 4K restoration: 3 Bad Men + intro by Bryony Dixon, Rosie Taylor and Makeda Doyal
This magnificent early John Ford western screens at the BFI for the first time.
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes + intro
Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell make for a magnetic duo, playing two showgirls pursuing a perfect match in Howard Hawks’ classic comedy musical.
Library Talk: Lost Star – The Rediscovery of the Transnational Stardom of Belinda Lee with Steve Chibnall
Steve Chibnall uncovers a forgotten film star’s meteoric rise and fall, from English seaside fame to American exile, revealing postwar challenges to respectability and stardom.
Rome Express + intro with writer Jonathan Coe, hosted by writer and season curator Kazuo Ishiguro
An opportunity to catch a ride aboard this criminally underseen British thriller.
Hard Boiled + intro by Xavier Alexandre Pillai, BFI TV Programmer
The action looks incredible in this in newly restored, digital 4K version of John Woo’s crime thriller masterpiece about a vengeful cop taking down an weapons-smuggling syndicate.
Blue Black Permanent + pre-recorded intro by Beth Johnston, Filmmaker
The first feature by a female Scottish filmmaker finds a young woman embarking on a lyrical journey to understand her lineage.
Missing Believed Wiped: Mid-Summer Special
A long-lost BBC documentary celebrating the release of Abbey Road screens alongside a special collection of recently uncovered items.
John Woo Double Bill: Red Cliff Part I + Red Cliff Part II
Don’t miss your opportunity to see both parts of John Woo’s historical epic on the big screen.
Eve and Marilyn + Q&A with Eve Arnold’s grandson, Michael Arnold
This short documentary and discussion will examine Monroe’s work with photojournalist Eve Arnold.
Murder on the Orient Express + intro with writer Sophie Hannah, hosted by writer and season curator Kazuo Ishiguro
The best Agatha Christie adaptation bar none was an atypical journey for director Sidney Lumet and features an incredible all-star cast.
The Seven Year Itch + intro by Ruby McGuigan, BFI Programme Development Manager
Marilyn Monroe is a middle-aged man’s ultimate fantasy in this comedy by Billy Wilder.
Preview: Ish + Q&A with Imran Perretta + producer Dhiraj Mahey and cast
A coming-of-age story for modern times, this powerful British debut explores the emotional cost of racism on our children.
Radio On + pre-recorded intro by director Christopher Petit
An existential road movie (and thriller with one flat tyre) that ranks among the most influential debuts in British cinema.
August
UK Premiere of 4K Restoration: Letty Lynton + intro by Caroline Cassin, Women & Cocaine film curator
Joan Crawford’s most elusive film returns from cinematic exile in a stunning 4K restoration.
Yonderland + Q&A with Jim Howick and Laurence Rickard
The fantasy world of Yonderland receives a visit from Birmingham’s Debbie Maddox, who some of the residents believe to be the ‘Chosen One’.
The War Game + Samira Ahmed remembers Peter Watkins in an extended conversation with Kevin Brownlow, Kodwo Eshun and Kristofer Woods
The BBC banned Peter Watkins’ notorious films about a future nuclear attack, and yet in 1966 it won an Oscar – for best documentary.
New Writings: Reboot Culture with William Proctor
What is a reboot? Dr William Proctor unpacks its origins, meanings, myths, and impact across film franchises and transmedia storytelling.
Peter Watkins: Resistance Isn’t Futile
In this illustrated introductory lecture, season curators William Fowler and James Bell will explore Peter Watkins’ life and work.
Preview: Lady + Q&A with actor Sian Clifford and director Samuel Abrahams
Sian Clifford’s narcissistic aristocrat hires a crew to film her life, but her obsession with attention soon twists into something surreal and unsettling.
Monica Vitti Season Introduction: More than a Muse
Season curator Catherine O’Rawe offers a journey through the life and career of the Italian screen icon.
Barbara Kopple Double Bill + intro by Dr Alice Pember
A double bill of Barbara Kopple’s gripping, Oscar-winning portraits of American workers fighting for dignity, survival and solidarity across two defining labour struggles.
L’eclisse + intro by season curator Catherine O’Rawe
Monica Vitti and Alain Delon are sublime and breathtakingly beautiful in Michelangelo Antonioni’s masterpiece.
Stardust + intro by season curator Catherine O’Rawe
Monica Vitti and Alberto Sordi, in their last on-screen pairing, shine in this bittersweet comic musical.
Clever Girls + intro by writer Richard Dyer
Monica Vitti shines as a woman determined to snag a husband in 1950s Italy.
Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared + Q&A with creators Becky Sloan and Joe Pelling
We celebrate the surreal, horrifying puppets of Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared with the show’s creators.
Muppets and Fraggles: A Celebration + Q&A with co-creator and writer of Fraggle Rock Jocelyn Stevenson
Come and celebrate the world of Jim Henson and his on-screen universe of Muppets and Fraggles.
I Married You for Fun + intro by writer and researcher Olga Campofreda
Monica Vitti is radiant in Luciano Salce’s stylish take on the sexual revolution in Italy.
Radical Cinema: Past, Present and Future Histories + Onyeka Igwe in conversation with William Fowler
Join us for experimental films and an extended conversation about Peter Watkins’ signature approach to cinema: restaging past events in the present and framing speculative futures as documentary.
À nos amours + intro
Sandrine Bonnaire is remarkable in her César-garlanded screen debut, playing a teenage girl grappling with her burgeoning sexuality.
Doctor Who: 20 Years On – The Tenth Doctor
We celebrate David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor with episodes and discussions.
La maison des bois (Episodes 1, 2 and 3) + intro
Maurice Pialat’s cinematic series, charting life in a small country village during the First World War, can finally be seen, fully restored, on the big screen.
The War Game + intro by season co-curator William Fowler
The BBC banned Peter Watkins’ notorious films about a future nuclear attack, and yet in 1966 it won an Oscar – for best documentary.
TV Preview: Bookish Series 2: Episode 1 + Q&A with Mark Gatiss and cast tbc
Emmy Award-winning writer Mark Gatiss returns as Gabriel Book, with three new mysteries to solve.
What Did You Eat Today? Rose Lowder + Q&A with the filmmakers William English and Sandra Cross
French-Peruvian filmmaker Rose Lowder prepares and eats a meal in the first of a series of beguiling films that trace the echoes of action in unexpected places.
The Adventures of Prince Achmed + panel discussion with musician Hugo Max and Lotte Reiniger scholar Tashi Petter
Lotte Reiniger’s strikingly beautiful film is an early animated classic and one not aimed at a young audience.
TV Preview: Vigil Series 3: Episode 1 + Q&A with cast members and series creator tbc
The foreboding icy tundra of the arctic is the backdrop for series three of the BBC’s pulse-racing thriller.
La notte + pre-recorded intro by writer Joanna Biggs
Existential angst has never looked as good as it does in Michelangelo Antonioni’s exploration of urban alienation.
BFI Member exclusives
BFI Members enjoy special events, previews and screenings at BFI Southbank all year round.
Temporary VAT-reduced rate for children: prices have been adjusted for all under 16’s tickets booked between 25 June and 1 September for screenings during the same period.
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