This November, the 2024 Russell Hobbs British Film Festival returns to cinemas in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Byron Bay with a stunning selection of films from across the United Kingdom. 

DATES & DEETS

06 NOV – 08 DEC

  • Adelaide SA
  • Ballarat VIC
  • Brisbane QLD
  • Byron Bay NSW
  • Canberra ACT
  • Melbourne VIC
  • Perth WA

07 NOV – 08 DEC

  • Sydney NSW

The line-up includes films direct from international film festivals and is brimming with tender dramas, action packed thrillers, comedy, documentaries and retrospectives, featuring many of Britain’s most admired acting and directing stars.

Opening this year’s festival is the premiere of Blitz, Steve McQueen’s visually stunning period drama depicting pivotal moments of World War II in London. The powerful and sweeping portrayal of British life during these events, which arrives direct from its London Film Festival premiere, features stellar central performances from Saoirse Ronan and Paul Weller, in addition to exceptional newcomer Elliot Heffernen who plays nine-year-old George.

Closing this year’s festival is the exclusive Australian premiere of the highly-anticipated We Live In Time. Featuring beautifully nuanced performances from Oscar nominees Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, this heart-rendering romance delves into the profound question of how to make the most of the time we have in this world.

Screening in special festival previews one week prior to official opening, and during the festival, is Widow Clicquot. This British/French co-production based on a true story offers an effervescent portrait of Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, the “Grande Dame of Champagne,” otherwise known as Veuve Clicquot. 

Aylin Tezel’s directorial debut Falling Into Place is screening in its Australian premiere at the festival. The tender drama follows Kira (played by Tezel) and Ian, each fleeing their own personal struggles, who cross paths during a winter weekend on the Isle of Skye. Their connection is profound but when they return to London, they must both confront their past.

The festival is excited to present the romance Four Letters of Love, featuring a commanding ensemble cast including Pierce Brosnan and Helena Bonham Carter. Polly Steele’s beautiful story follows Nicholas and Isabel who are destined for each other, As ghosts, fate and the sheer power of true love pull them together, so too does life threaten to tear them apart.

The festival will include the recently opened Palace Regent Ballarat in Victoria in its national locations, bringing the first taste of the Palace film festival experience to the region. 

The festival is also pleased to welcome aboard naming partner Russell Hobbs, the iconically British appliance brand.

The screening locations are: Melbourne – The Astor Theatre, Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, Palace Penny Lane, The Kino, Pentridge Cinema; Ballarat – Palace Regent; Canberra: Palace Electric Cinemas; Brisbane – Palace Barracks, Palace James Street; Adelaide – Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas, Palace Nova Prospect Cinemas; Perth: Palace Raine Square, Luna on SX, Leederville and Windsor; Byron Bay – Palace Byron Bay; Sydney – Palace Norton Street, Palace Moore Park, Chauvel Cinema, Palace Central.

For further details and to purchase tickets, go to www.britishfilmfestival.com.au.


BRITISH FILM FESTIVAL PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

  • Blitz: Steve McQueen’s visually stunning period drama offers a powerful and sweeping portrayal of British life during the pivotal moments of World War II featuring stellar central performances from Saoirse Ronan and Paul Weller. 
  • Conclave: Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Lawrence who is entrusted with the secretive task of selecting a new Pope, but in the Vatican’s sacred halls, he uncovers secrets that could destabilise the Roman Catholic Church. 
  • Firebrand: In the final months of King Henry VIII’s reign, his sixth wife, Katherine Parr, faces the perilous challenges of the Tudor court. Alicia Vikander and Jude Law lead a gripping historical drama about power and survival.  
  • Falling Into Place: The film follows Kira and Ian, each fleeing their own personal struggles, who cross paths during a winter weekend on the Isle of Skye. Their connection is profound but when they return to London, they must confront their pasts. 
  • Widow Cliquot: Widow Cliquot is a rousing true story offering an effervescent portrait of Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, the “Grande Dame of Champagne,” otherwise known as Veuve Clicquot. 
  • A Room With a View: In tribute to the late Dame Maggie Smith, we present James Ivory’s classic melodrama, following Lucy, a young Englishwoman on a tour of Florence, as a series of events challenge her societal expectations. 
  • The Shamrock Spitfire: The Shamrock Spitfire follows Brendan “Paddy” Finucane, an Irishman who rises from eager RAF recruit to legendary fighter ace and the youngest Wing Commander during WWII, leading his squadron to historic fame.  
  • Four Letters of Love: Featuring a commanding ensemble cast including Pierce Brosnan and Helena Bonham Carter, Polly Steele’s tender story navigates the human condition following Nicholas and Isabel who are destined for each other, but their path to true love is anything but straightforward. 
  • The Return: Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche star in this adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey that exudes the classical essence of the Greek epic with a distinctly British spin offering a meticulously measured classical work.
  • The Problem With People: Colm Meaney and Paul Reiser star as estranged cousins who, despite never having met, must resolve a generation’s worth of family disputes – before they start another one!  
  • Hard Truths: Mike Leigh’s latest film reunites him with Marianne Jean-Baptiste for a darkly humorous and insightful exploration of family dynamics. The film examines a hypersensitive woman’s impact on her family, blending compassion with Leigh’s signature attention to detail. 
  • And Mrs: When a hesitant bride-to-be loses her fiancé unexpectedly, she is determined to proceed with the wedding, pledging to defy public opinion, legal barriers, and the objections of her loved ones.  
  • Lies We Tell: An orphaned heiress battles her sinister uncle’s schemes to claim her inheritance. As danger mounts, she defies Gothic conventions, seizing control of her fate in a feminist reimagining of Uncle Silas.  
  • Edge of Summer: Two 11-year-olds, drawn together during a summer holiday, embark on an adventure to uncover the mystery of who or what is calling to them from the depths of an abandoned tin mine, inspired by an old folk tale.  
  • This Time Next Year: Minnie and Quinn are born just one minute apart on the same day, but their lives take completely different paths. Years later, a chance encounter offers the perfect moment to take a chance on love. 
  • We Live in Time: Showcasing beautifully nuanced performances from Oscar nominees Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, this heart-rending romance delves into the profound question of how to make the most of the time we have in this world. 

For details of other movies and to purchase tickets, go to www.britishfilmfestival.com.au.

Pictures: Blitz, on cover, Ralph Fiennes as Cardinal Lawrence in Conclave, main, and Four Letters of Love, above, will feature in the 2024 British Film Festival. Credit: Supplied