Rowan Atkinson will join Purbeck Film Festival in person this autumn for a Jacques Tati day at the Mowlem theatre, Swanage, honouring a filmmaker who shaped his own comic sensibility – one of the standout events in a season marking thirty years of the UK’s longest-running rural film festival.
Founded in 1996 to mark cinema’s centenary, the Festival has grown from a modest first year – 1,700 visitors across 21 screenings – into a charity with genuine national reach. Early seasons featured directors Stephen Frears and Asif Kapadia, Julian Fellowes on Gosford Park, and cinematographers Jack Cardiff and Ossie Morris. In 2009, the Purbeck Film Charitable Trust brought the Festival and Rex Cinema together, a partnership lasting until 2021. Dame Maggie Smith’s 2015 visit remains a high point, and patrons Sir Mark Rylance and Sir Sam Mendes continue a legacy built on rural roots and quiet ambition.
Reflecting on the milestone, Rylance called the anniversary “quite remarkable”, adding that small festivals like Purbeck are a “godsend for filmmakers” that help nurture the human heart of cinema.
Purbeck’s distinctiveness lies in its venues: Corfe Castle, village halls, secret gardens, restaurants and stately homes stand in for conventional cinemas. As one attendee put it: “The variety of venues appeals greatly to me, and I am seeing films which I would probably not see at a traditional cinema.”
Beyond the Atkinson event, this year’s anniversary programme includes exclusive previews, Cannes prize-winners and UK premieres alongside the documentaries and local stories that have long defined the Festival. BAFTA-nominated director Philippa Lowthorpe presents her adaptation H Is for Hawk, starring Claire Foy, at St Mary’s Church, Swanage. The Etches Collection, Kimmeridge, hosts a Family Gala screening of Jurassic Park alongside ‘Big Sara’, the museum’s Allosaurus, with free tubs of Purbeck Ice Cream ‘Diggasaurus’.
Claire Burns, Festival Director, said:
“This festival has always belonged to the communities of Purbeck and the audiences who travel from across the country to be part of something truly special.
“What started thirty years ago as a bold idea for rural cinema has grown into something we’re incredibly proud of.”
The Autumn Festival runs from Friday 16 October to Sunday 1 November 2026, with screenings across Purbeck, Poole, Bournemouth and beyond. Full details at www.purbeckfilm.com
