Bristol Silents was established by Chris Daniels and Norman Taylor in 2000 to promote and celebrate

silent cinema A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, whe ...

in the

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

area and in the United Kingdom. The first ever event the organisation put on was a selection of

Louise Brooks Mary Louise Brooks (November 14, 1906 – August 8, 1985) was an American film actress and dancer during the 1920s and 1930s. She is regarded today as an icon of the Jazz Age and flapper culture, in part due to the bob hairstyle that she helpe ...

films in October 2000 at the

Arnolfini Arnolfini is an international arts centre and gallery in Bristol, England. It has a programme of contemporary art exhibitions, artist's performance, music and dance events, poetry and book readings, talks, lectures and cinema. There is also a ...

, Bristol.Bristol Silents celebrate 10 year Anniversary
, South West Screen. The group aimed to present a range of silent films along with educational programmes in order to raise awareness and appreciation of the Silent era amongst the film going public. January, 2005 saw Bristol Silents establish the

Slapstick Festival The Slapstick Festival is an annual event in Bristol, United Kingdom. During the festival, which was created in 2005 by Bristol Silents, there are screenings of silent, classic, and visual comedy films. The intent of the festival is to introduce th ...

in the city of Bristol. Since then, the festival has returned to the city every January and has included guests such as

Eric Sykes Eric Sykes (4 May 1923 – 4 July 2012) was an English radio, stage, television and film writer, comedian, actor, and director whose performing career spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and performed with many other leading com ...

Christopher Chaplin Christopher James Chaplin (born 8 July 1962) is a Swiss-born English composer and actor. He is the youngest son of film comedian Charlie Chaplin and his fourth wife Oona O'Neill. Biography Christopher Chaplin was born on 8 July 1962 at Clin ...

Jean Darling Jean Darling (born Dorothy Jean LeVake; August 23, 1922 – September 4, 2015) was an American child actress who was a regular in the ''Our Gang'' short subjects series from 1927–29. Prior to her death, she was one of four surviving cast ...

(of Our Gang fame) and

Diana Serra Cary Diana Serra Cary (born Peggy-Jean Montgomery; October 29, 1918 – February 24, 2020), known as Baby Peggy, was an American child film actress, vaudevillian, author and silent film historian. She was the last living person with a substantial car ...

(aka Baby Peggy).Return of Slapstick
BBC Bristol Entertainment.

Supporters

Regular supporters of Bristol Silents have included:

Kevin Brownlow Kevin Brownlow (born Robert Kevin Brownlow; 2 June 1938) is a British film historian, television documentary-maker, filmmaker, author, and film editor. He is best known for his work documenting the history of the silent era, having become inter ...

(Film Historian and Author),

Paul McGann Paul John McGann (; born 14 November 1959) is an English actor. He came to prominence for portraying Percy Toplis in the television serial ''The Monocled Mutineer'' (1986), then starred in the dark comedy ''Withnail and I'' (1987), which was a ...

(Actor),

David Robinson David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1989 to 2003, and minority owner of the Spurs. Nicknamed ...

(Film Historian and Author),

Peter Lord Peter Lord CBE (born 1953) is an English animator, director, producer and co-founder of the Academy Award-winning Aardman Animations studio, an animation firm best known for its clay-animated films and shorts, particularly those featuring p ...

(Aardman Animations),

Chris Serle Christopher Richard Serle (born 13 July 1943 in Bristol, England) is a former BBC TV presenter, reporter and actor. Biography Serle was educated at Clifton College and Trinity College, Dublin, where he studied modern languages. He appeared as ...

(Broadcaster),

David Sproxton David Sproxton, (born 6 January 1954) is a British entrepreneur, best known as one of the co-founders, with Peter Lord, of the Aardman Animations studio. Sproxton was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) on 17 June 20 ...

(Aardman Animations) and Richard Williams (Animator).Bristol Silents Patron Paul McGann presents: Louise Brooks at 100
Watershed, Bristol.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Bristol Silents

Slapstick Festival
Festivals in Bristol Film festivals in England

Supporters

See also

References

External links