National Book Lovers Day

9th August sees National Book Lovers Day, celebrating all of the avid readers out there! To celebrate, our intern Brigette has put together this handy programming guide of just some of the best book to film adaptations available through our Booking Scheme: Benedetta Paul Verhoeven’s Benedetta follows the life of a 17th century nun who experiences extreme religious visions whilst having an intimate relationship with a fellow nun. Loosely based on Immodest Acts: The life of Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy by Judith C. Brown, this controversial tale of religion and sexuality was nominated for the Palm d’Or and Queer Palm at the 74th Cannes Film Festival and won the Top Five Foreign Language Films in 2022 with Virginie Efira’s fierce performance nominated for a Cesar award for Best Actress. Book now. A Prayer Before Dawn A Prayer Before Dawn is a highly acclaimed biopic based on Billy Moore’s A Prayer Before Dawn: My nightmare in Thailand’s Prisons. An addict and former boxer Billy is incarcerated in Thailand’s most notorious prison, he uses Muay Thai to survive and redeem himself whilst resisting his drug and criminal filled world. Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire immerses audiences with this gruesome biopic with Joe Cole’s captivating performance winning BIFA’s Best Actor and achieving 4 more 2018 BIFA nominations.  Book now. Animal Farm Adapted from George Orwell’s classic fable, Animal Farm (1954) became Britain’s first theatrically released animated feature film. Directed by award winning animators, John Halas and Joy Batchelor, the BAFTA nominated political satire follows farm animals who revolt against their cruel farmer but in their attempts for a peaceful and equal coexistence they again fall into tyranny.  Book now. A Liar’s Autobiography Based on A Liar’s Autobiography: Volume VI, the film is raunchy semi-biographical comedy threaded together with multiple animation techniques, Graham Chapman’s narration and cuts of the Python’s film and interviews. A visual feast directed by Bill Jones, Jeff Simpson and Ben Timlett celebrates the eclectic life and works of comedy legend Graham Chapman. Book now.