Cinema in the North

Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor

As always October brings out the best in the North’s cinemas and independent film programmers as the spirit of Halloween finds its way to big screens across the region. We’re especially excited for HOME’s 1970s-themed FilmFear which keeps things interesting by combining heavyweight horror classics with some rarer discoveries, as well as the return of Grimmfest who get the spooky party started early in the month.

On the other side of Manchester, CULTPLEX present what they reckon is the North’s biggest season of horror movies, featuring all kinds of marathons, guests and events. In Liverpool, PVTV’s impeccable curation of Fringe Flicks continues with a programme of shorts that features seasonally-appropriate monster comedies and poetic haunting.

There’s more than just horror movies on offer over the next month though! In Leeds, some inspired curation brings the work of Menelik Shabazz back to the big screen at Hyde Park Picture House. At HOME, London Film Festival has it’s annual excursion to Manchester and brings with it some of the year’s most exciting films. While back in Liverpool, FACT have a huge retrospective dedicated to the films of Alfred Hitchcock, while Paraphysis Cinema continue their season of Queer British Gems.

Our top picks

Queer British Gems at Kitty’s Laundrette

Queer British Gems at Kitty's Laundrette at Kitty's Laundrette, Liverpool, Until 3 December 2025, From £1.00 - Book now

Paraphysis Cinema dive into the archives of queer British cinema for this excellent season of screenings in a Liverpool laundrette.

beautiful thing
n/a

Scalarama Leeds

Scalarama Leeds at The Attic, Leeds (and other venues), Until 27 September 2025, From £0.00 - Book now

Cinemas, films clubs and DIY movie exhibitors combine for a huge, month-long celebration of cinema across Leeds.

a group of popcorn tubs that are branded yellow saying scalarama leeds 2025
Visit Leeds

UrbanArtistry Presents… The Art Of Disobedience at Cultplex

UrbanArtistry Presents... The Art Of Disobedience at Cultplex, Manchester, 19 September 2025, From £7.50 - Book now

UrbanArtistry is back for a second season starting with a behind the scenes account of Rome’s most wanted street artist.

Graffiti artist GECO stood Infront of a city Scape at night
The Art Of Disobedience - GECO

Under the Mink: Film Noir at Columbia Pictures at HOME

Under the Mink: Film Noir at Columbia Pictures at HOME Manchester, Manchester, 19–29 September 2025 - Book now

From the heyday of Columbia Pictures, HOME presents a season of classic noir featuring top stars from Humphrey Bogart to Gloria Grahame.

Image supplied by Home MCR

Kino Presents Soul on Sunday #2: Summer of Soul at Nia Centre

Kino presents Soul on Sunday #2 plus "Summer of Soul". at Niamos Centre, Manchester, Manchester, 21 September 2025, From £5.00 - Book now

Questlove’s thumping documentary account of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival screens alongside music from Northern Soul DJs.

© Searchlight Pictures. © 2021 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved
© Searchlight Pictures. © 2021 20th Century Studios All Rights Reserved

Rediscover/ Hitchcock at FACT

Rediscover/ Hitchcock at FACT, Liverpool, 20 September–1 November 2025, From £9.35 - Book now

Psychos, murder and men on the run. Rediscover the work of Alfred Hitchcock with FACT’s 10-film retrospective.

Widescreen Weekend at The National Science and Media Museum

Widescreen Weekend at National Science and Media Museum, Bradford, 25–29 September 2025, From £5.50 - Book now

Korean Widescreen Cinema, classic film stars and a Dark Knight triple bill — find out what’s in store for Widescreen Weekend 2025.

Widescreen Weekend at Pictureville
National Science and Media Museum

Leeds Cinema Crawl Vol. 2: Sophomore Features

Leeds Cinema Crawl at Cottage Road Cinema, Leeds (and other venues), 28 September 2025, From £8.00 - Book now

Traverse the city with a movie marathon with a difference. For it’s second edition, Leeds Cinema Crawl presents the sophomore features of four directors across four different venues. Have you got the stamina?

An iconic scene from the film Whiplash; Terence Fletcher aproaches Andrew Neiman menacingly as he plays the drums
Image supplied by Leeds Inspired

Hundreds of Beavers – Revenge of the Beavers Tour at HOME

Hundreds of Beavers - Revenge of the Beavers Tour (12A) + Q&A at HOME Manchester, Manchester, 6 October 2025 - Book now

There will be… beavers! The cult movie phenomenon returns to Manchester with a special Q&A screening.

Image supplied by Home MCR

Midnight Marauders at Showroom Cinema

Midnight Marauders at Showroom Workstation, Sheffield, Until 26 September 2025, From £5.00 - Book now

Showroom Cinema channel the spirit of the midnight movie with a series of late Friday night screenings of films meant to be seen after the sun goes down.

Grimmfest 2025 at Odeon Great Northern

Grimmfest at Odeon Great Northern, Manchester, 9–12 October 2025, From £21.99 - Book now

Dev Patel, Jeremy Piven and Pixie Lott star in Grimmfest’s freshly announced 2025 programme. We explore Manchester’s biggest horror film festival.

Menelik Shabazz: Rebel Generation at Hyde Park Picture House

Menelik Shabazz: Rebel Generation at Hyde Park Picture House, Leeds, 5–25 October 2025, From £6.00 - Book now

Discover the life and work of a pioneering figure in Black British cinema through a series of screenings, talks and workshops in Leeds.

CULTPLEX presents: STAB 2025

CULTPLEX presents: STAB 2025 at Cultplex, Manchester, 1 October–1 November 2025, From £8.00 - Book now

A month-long horror extravaganza this October. Nobody does Halloween quite like CULTPLEX.

Chucky
n.a

London Film Festival 2025 at HOME

London Film Festival at HOME Manchester, Manchester, 8 October 2025 - Book now

A taste of London Film Festival in Manchester. HOME present eleven brand new films featuring top talent from Hollywood and around the world.

Image supplied by Home MCR

PVTV Fringe Flicks: Surreal Short Films feat. Hotel Kalura at DoES Liverpool

PVTV Fringe Flicks: Surreal Short Films feat. Hotel Kalura at DoES Liverpool, 10 October 2025, From £1.00 - Book now

People Versus TV present programme of surreal and experimental short film in a welcoming, social space that brings together Liverpool’s burgeoning indie film scene.

Hotel Kalura still
Sophie Koko Gate

FilmFear 2025 at HOME

FilmFear at HOME Manchester, Manchester, 29 October–2 November 2025, From £11.15 - Book now

HOME’s annual season of scary movies goes all 1970s this year. Featuring British folk horror, Italian giallo, sapphic vampires and one big Texan with a chain saw.

Image supplied by Home MCR

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