Brief Encounter

This September welcomes an exciting collaboration celebrating the 10th anniversary of Bristol Film Festival, the 60th anniversary of the Redgrave Theatre, and a British cinema star’s connections to the city.

We’ll be screening the acclaimed romantic drama Brief Encounter.

Adapted by Noël Coward from one of his own plays, and helmed by celebrated British director David Lean, it is frequently cited as one of the greatest films of all time, including a British Film Institute poll naming it the 2nd greatest British film of the 20th Century (pushing three of Lean’s other films down the Top 10!).

The film marked Trevor Howard’s breakthrough performance as a leading man. Howard was educated at Clifton College and spent his formative years in the city; after his death he left a gift in his will to support performing arts in Clifton, with a private family memorial service taking place in the College’s Chapel. Howard was recently commemorated with a plaque in his honour on the Redgrave’s exterior.

The evening will be introduced by Festival Director Owen Franklin, who will be talking about Howard’s colourful life and career, before this true classic of British cinema returns to the big screen in one of the most fitting locations in the city in his honour.