Alan Bennett

Alan Bennett Trailers

Alan Bennett: 90 Years On TrailerStewart Lee: Tornado TrailerEric Ravilious: Drawn to War Trailer

Alan Bennett (born 9 May 1934) is an English playwright, screenwriter and author. Born in Leeds, he attended Oxford University where he studied history and performed with The Oxford Revue. He stayed to teach and research medieval history at the university for several years. His collaboration as writer and performer with Dudley Moore, Jonathan Miller and Peter Cook in the satirical revue Beyond the Fringe at the 1960 Edinburgh Festival brought him instant fame. He gave up academia, and turned to writing full time, his first stage play Forty Years On being produced in 1968. His output includes The Madness of George III and its film incarnation The Madness of King George, the series of monologues Talking Heads, the play The History Boys, and popular audio books, including his readings of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Winnie-the-Pooh.

Most Popular Alan Bennett Trailers

Total trailers found: 67

A Private Function Trailer (1984)

09 November 1984

In the summer of 1947, Britain prepares to commemorate the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Phillip.

Dreamchild Trailer (1985)

04 October 1985

Eighty-year-old Alice Hargreaves is about to visit Columbia University to attend a reception in honor of author Lewis Carroll.

The Merry Wives of Windsor Trailer (1982)

28 December 1982

When Sir John Falstaff decides that he wants to have a little fun he writes two letters to a pair of Window wives: Mistress Ford and Mistress Page.

Remember the Secret Policeman's Ball? Trailer (2004)

09 December 2004

The Secret Policeman benefit shows for Amnesty International brought together comedy grand masters - from Python and Beyond the Fringe - and performers then relatively unknown, like Rowan Atkinson.

Long Shot Trailer (1978)

17 November 1978

Against the backdrop of the 1977 Edinburgh Film Festival, two low-budget filmmakers attempt to talk up some finance as they hunt for cash, cast and ‘name director’ Sam Fuller to shoot their Aberdeen-set oil-boom adventure ‘Gulf and Western’.

Every Home Should Have One Trailer (1970)

05 March 1970

Teddy works for a large advertising company. Given the seemingly impossible task of selling frozen porridge, he decides to produce commercials that make the product seem sexy.

Little Dorrit Trailer (1987)

11 December 1987

A drama based on the novel by Charles Dickens which tells the story of Arthur Clennam who is thrown into a debtor's prison.

In Love and War Trailer (1996)

18 December 1996

After teenage ambulance driver Ernest Hemingway takes shrapnel in the leg during World War I, he falls in love with Agnes von Kurowsky, a beautiful older nurse at the hospital where he's sent to recover.

An Englishman Abroad Trailer (1983)

29 November 1983

Actress Coral Browne travels to Moscow, and meets a mysterious Englishman. Turns out he's the notorious spy, Guy Burgess.

Stewart Lee: Tornado Trailer (2022)

29 September 2022

The Bafta-winning Stewart Lee performs his latest touring show, focusing on a bizarrely erroneous description of his work on Netflix and a mind-boggling review from Alan Bennett.

Me! I'm Afraid of Virginia Woolf Trailer (1978)

02 December 1978

A repressed night-school teacher, secretly homosexual, struggles to cope with his demanding, eccentric mother.

Afternoon Off Trailer (1979)

03 February 1979

Lee, a Chinese man, works as a waiter in a hotel in England, despite speaking very little English. Told that a girl called Iris might be interested in him, on his afternoon off work he buys a box of chocolates and sets off to find her.

A Question of Attribution Trailer (1991)

20 October 1991

Sir Anthony Blunt, who was a Soviet agent for 25 years, is routinely questioned and gives no answers, but is knighted and works as Director of the Courtauld Institute, and presents his interrogator with a puzzle in the shape of a doubtful Titian painting.

Selling Hitler Trailer (1991)

11 June 1991

In 1981, Gerd Heidemann, a war correspondent and reporter with the German magazine Stern, makes what he believes is the literary and historical scoop of the century: the personal diaries of Adolf Hitler.

The Willows in Winter Trailer (1996)

26 December 1996

Hailed as the "rightful heir" to "The Wind in the Willows", William Horwood's critically acclaimed sequel comes to magical life in this beautifully animated feature-length classic.

The Secret Policeman's Other Ball Trailer (1982)

01 March 1982

Following the success of the 1979 show and the financial benefits accruing to Amnesty from the spin-off movie, TV special and record albums – Cleese, Lewis and Walker planned the next show to be a more spectacular event.

Alice in Wonderland Trailer (1966)

28 December 1966

Alice in Wonderland (1966) is a BBC television play based on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.

Doris and Doreen Trailer (1978)

16 December 1978

A series of pink forms has Doris and Doreen fearing for their cushy jobs.

National Theatre Live: Allelujah! Trailer (2018)

01 November 2018

Filmed live at London’s Bridge Theatre during its limited run. The Beth, an old fashioned cradle-to-grave hospital serving a town in Yorkshire, is threatened with closure as part of an efficiency drive.

All Day on the Sands Trailer (1979)

24 February 1979

Mr and Mrs Cooper are staying at a boarding-house in the seaside resort of Morecambe with their small children, Colin and Jennifer.

The Madness of King George Trailer (1994)

28 December 1994

Aging King George III of England is exhibiting signs of madness, a problem little understood in 1788.

Talking Heads 2 Trailer (1998)

06 October 1998

A series of monologues.

A Visit from Miss Prothero Trailer (1978)

11 January 1978

Arthur Dodsworth has recently retired. He lives alone except for his budgie and memories of his late wife Winnie.

Sunset Across the Bay Trailer (1975)

20 February 1975

A married couple, after a life time of work and bringing up a family, retire and awaken to the fast changing world around them, the habitual nature of their relationship, and what they have left.

102 Boulevard Haussmann Trailer (1990)

09 November 1990

In 1916 author Marcel Proust is leading a reclusive life in Paris. He hires a quartet of musicians and befriends one of them, a wounded serviceman.

The Lady in the Van Trailer (2015)

30 October 2015

The true story of the relationship between Alan Bennett and the singular Miss Shepherd, a woman of uncertain origins who ‘temporarily’ parked her van in Bennett’s London driveway and proceeded to live there for 15 years.

Alan Bennett: 90 Years On Trailer (2024)

13 December 2024

In May 2024, Alan Bennett turned 90. This film celebrates the life and long career of one of Britain's best-loved playwrights.

Dinner at Noon Trailer (1988)

08 August 1988

Writer Alan Bennett visits a hotel in the north of England, observes the guests, and reminisces about his experiences of staying in boarding-houses as a child.

My Friend Sam: Living for the Moment Trailer (2012)

16 January 2012

Sam was born with an extremely rare genetic disorder called Familial Dysautonomia. When born, he had 50 per cent chance of making it to his fifth birthday.

The Young Visiters Trailer (2003)

26 December 2003

The Young Visiters, written in twelve days by nine-year-old Daisy Ashford in 1890, is a surreal blend of naiveté, precocious perception and inadvertent social satire.

The Old Crowd Trailer (1979)

27 January 1979

George and Betty, a middle-class English couple, have just moved into a big Edwardian house in London and are throwing a party to celebrate.

Beyond the Fringe Trailer (1964)

12 December 1964

A TV version of the stage show originally performed at the Edinburgh Fringe (August 1960) and in London (Fortune Theatre, May 1961) and Broadway (October 1962).

One Fine Day Trailer (1979)

17 February 1979

Alan Bennett's play about the mid-life crisis of an estate agent.

The Native Hue of Resolution Trailer (2013)

21 December 2013

A documentary celebrating 20 years of the work of Kaleidoscope, an organisation devoted to the preservation of archive television.

Eric Ravilious: Drawn to War Trailer (2022)

01 July 2022

One of Britain’s greatest landscape artists, Eric Ravilious, is killed in a plane crash while on commission as Official War Artist in Iceland in 1942.

The Insurance Man Trailer (1986)

22 February 1986

Franz, a young man, works in a dye factory in Prague. One day he notices a rash-like eczema, growing on his hands.

The Importance of Being Morrissey Trailer (2003)

08 June 2003

Featuring interviews by famous fans and followers, this rare documentary encapsulates the essence of the controversial, enigmatic, and deliciously melancholic bard.

Talking Heads Trailer (1988)

19 April 1988

Six monologues tell the stories of six different repressed souls: a man dominated by his mother, a vicar's wife, an inveterate letter writer, a hopeful actress, a recently widowed woman, and an elderly shut-in.

Portrait or Bust Trailer (1994)

04 April 1994

Alan Bennett's personal overview of art, filmed in the atmospheric location of a Leeds art gallery.

Pleasure at Her Majesty's Trailer (1976)

29 December 1976

The first of the Amnesty International comedy benefit galas. The title is a play on the phrase at Her Majesty's pleasure (the show was performed at Her Majesty's Theatre, London).

The History Boys Trailer (2006)

02 October 2006

The story of an unruly class of bright, funny history students at a Yorkshire grammar school in pursuit of an undergraduate place at Oxford or Cambridge.

Julie Walters and Friends Trailer (1991)

29 December 1991

Julie Walters stars in new sketches by four accomplished writers who helped make her famous.

Mouse and Mole at Christmas Time Trailer (2013)

16 December 2013

Animation telling of the adventures of Mouse, Mole, Rat and Owl. Before giving a Twelfth Night party, Mouse makes a snowmole for Mole.

A Little Outing Trailer (1977)

20 October 1977

Mam likes to make the weekly visit to Grandad into a proper little outing.

Intensive Care Trailer (1982)

09 November 1982

When Denis Midgley's father is rushed to hospital, Midgley drops everything to be by his side. They've never really got on, so Midgley wants to be sure he's there if his father ever regains consciousness.

The Wind in the Willows Trailer (1995)

24 December 1995

Jailed for his reckless driving, rambunctious Mr. Toad has to escape from prison when his beloved Toad Hall comes under threat from the wily weasels, who plan to build a dog food factory on the very meadow sold to them by Toad himself.

Alan Bennett's Diaries Trailer (2016)

16 November 2016

Documentary about British author and actor Alan Bennett. Recorded over the course of a year, the film features a number of intimate encounters with Bennett, including a trip to New York to receive an award from the city's public library, a national radio appearance and a visit to his local community-run library in Primrose Hill, London.

Rolling Home Trailer (1982)

03 December 1982

Mr Wyman is an elderly man whose increasingly unreliable memory has landed him in a geriatric ward. Here he is visited by his daughters Val and Molly, and Molly's husband Harold, and looked after by the ward's two male nurses, Vic and Donald, who are in competition for a promotion.

Books: The Last Chapter? Trailer (2011)

13 December 2011

Will the rise of electronic books mark the final chapter in the love story between traditional books and their readers? Alan Yentob discusses the subject with a host of writers.

Stop All the Clocks: W.H. Auden in an Age of Anxiety Trailer (2017)

30 September 2017

Thirty years after his BBC film The Auden Landscape, director Adam Low returns to the poet and his work.

Being Alan Bennett Trailer (2009)

05 December 2009

Documentary providing a rare glimpse into the life of Alan Bennett, one of the UK's best-loved writers, with interviews, archive footage and new work.

A Life in Death Trailer (1991)

28 August 1991

Dennis is an undertaker, and for him death is a serious business. But for his mother, it's a day out and a chance to dress up and chat.

Prick Up Your Ears Trailer (1987)

17 April 1987

When the young, attractive Joe Orton meets the older, more introverted Kenneth Halliwell at drama school, he befriends the kindred spirit and they start an affair.

National Theatre Live: The Habit of Art Trailer (2010)

22 April 2010

National Theatre Live’s 2010 broadcast of Alan Bennett’s acclaimed play The Habit of Art, with Richard Griffiths, Alex Jennings and Frances de la Tour, returns to cinemas as part of the National Theatre's 50th anniversary celebrations.

Allelujah Trailer (2023)

17 March 2023

When news of the closure of a small hospital's geriatric ward begins to reach the community, the hospital invites a local news crew to document their planning of a concert in honor of the hospital's most celebrated nurse.

National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage Trailer (2013)

02 November 2013

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the National Theatre of Great Britain presents National Theatre: 50 Years on Stage, bringing together the best British actors for a unique evening of unforgettable performances, broadcast live from London to cinemas around the world.

National Theatre Live: The Madness of George III Trailer (2018)

20 November 2018

It’s 1786 and King George III is the most powerful man in the world. But his behaviour is becoming increasingly erratic as he succumbs to fits of lunacy.

Our Winnie Trailer (1982)

12 November 1982

Winnie is a mentally handicapped woman who lives with her elderly mother (Cora) and aunt (Ida). They visit the cemetery where Winnie’s father is buried.

Say Something Happened Trailer (1982)

17 December 1982

An inexperienced social worker is sent to interview an elderly couple deemed to be “at risk”, but ends up learning just as much about herself.

Some Interesting Facts About Peter Cook Trailer (1995)

19 December 1995

A documentary about the life of British satirist and founder of 'Private Eye' Peter Cook.