ENTERTAINMENT
The L-Shaped Room at BFI: a 35mm London film evening
Choose this BFI Southbank screening for its archive-print presentation and introduction by Cathi Unsworth. The dated programme places the event on 15 September; confirm the exact start before travelling.
The essentials, in one place
Choose your date, check your ticket and plan the journey.
- Date
- 15 Sept 2026
- Venue
- BFI Southbank South Bank
- What time does it start?
- Start time not confirmed here London local time. A door opening time is not a stage time.
- How long is it?
- 137-minute film; introduction is additional
- Tickets
- Ticketed; check selected BFI performance Availability and prices can change.
Access, line-up and the journey home
- Access
- Certificate 12A; check performance-specific access Venue access information ↗
- Finish and running time
- Allow extra time for any introduction, interval and exit queues; confirm the full event length with the venue.
- Return journey
- Use your actual departure date and time in the journey planner, especially if you expect to leave after midnight.
- Date
- 15 September 2026
- Director
- Bryan Forbes
- Film
- UK · 1962 · 137 minutes
- 35mm · BFI National Archive
- Certificate
- 12A
- Start and price
- Confirm the selected BFI performance
The film and the London connection
Bryan Forbes adapts Lynne Reid Banks’ novel about a pregnant woman finding an unexpected community in a west London lodging house. The cast includes Leslie Caron, Tom Bell, Brock Peters and Cicely Courtneidge. It offers a view of London through housing and personal relationships rather than landmark sightseeing.
What makes this performance different
BFI lists a 35mm National Archive print and an introduction by author and journalist Cathi Unsworth. This is an introduction, not an advertised audience Q&A. Choose it if the physical film presentation and critical context matter to you; do not assume those extras accompany another screening.
Is it the right choice for your evening?
A useful decision is whether you want a focused film evening or a short cultural stop. At 137 minutes before the introduction, this belongs in the first group. Leave another exhibition or shopping trip optional. If choosing for friends, agree on the length and subject beforehand instead of treating an old classic as automatically suitable for everyone.
What is and is not confirmed
The certificate is 12A. The public listing checked here does not expose a dependable performance start or current price, so neither is supplied as a guess. Open the official ticket selection for those details and read the certificate guidance for your group. An accessible event page is not evidence that seats remain.
Plan the visit around your ticket
First confirm that your booking is for BFI Southbank, not another BFI location. Save the auditorium, performance time and ticket confirmation before leaving. Build the return journey from the actual screening start, allowing for any additional introduction. If you have a fixed last train, ask the box office about the complete event length before paying; the film runtime alone is not a safe finish-time estimate.
Access and arrival checks
BFI gives Waterloo as the nearest Underground station, served by the Jubilee, Northern, Bakerloo and Waterloo & City lines. The address is Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XT. There is no on-site parking, including Blue Badge parking. Check TfL for your actual journey and lift status. BFI provides lift or step-free routes to its screens; reserve wheelchair and companion places with its access team before the screening. Confirm audio description or descriptive subtitles for your chosen performance separately.
Make it a manageable London outing
BFI Riverfront, the BFI Bar and the cafe offer on-site food or drink options; check their current menus and hours before planning around them. The free Reuben Library and Mediatheque are other possibilities when open. Choose one extra, not three rigid bookings. In rain, protect the cinema booking and shorten any riverside walk. After the film, leave time to talk rather than scheduling an immediate cross-city connection.
After 15 September
This page records one dated screening and will leave current recommendations after its London date. Use the calendar for new choices; do not turn up expecting an archived introduction to repeat. The cover is an original editorial illustration, not a frame from the film.
