Free 24 Hour Party People screening in Doncaster to mark film's anniversary
The Madchester biopic is celebrating its 24th anniversary
Free screenings of Madchester biopic 24 Hour Party People are to take place in Doncaster to mark the film’s anniversary.
Michael Winterbottom’s iconic 2002 film stars Steve Coogan and tells the story of Granada TV presenter Tony Wilson and how he created legendary record label Factory.
He signed a number of local bands who became the most influential artists of their time, including Joy Division - who went on to become New Order - and also the Happy Mondays.
What ensues is a blackly comic tale of music, sex, drugs, larger-than-life characters, and the birth of one of the most famous dance clubs in the world, The Haçienda.
The movie graphically documents the vibrancy that made Madchester the place to be.
More than 100 independent cinemas will be screening the film for free in October, including the Savoy in Sir Nigel Gresley Square which has showings on October 5 and 6.
As well as Coogan, the movie also stars Paddy Considine, Simon Pegg, John Simm, Rob Brydon, Lennie James, Keith Allen and Andy Serkis as well as cameos from Manchester legends such as Happy Mondays’ Paul Ryder and Rowetta, Mark E. Smith and Mani of the Stone Roses.
The screenings are association with Escapes, the nationwide free cinema initiative supported by the British Film Institute (BFI) which awards National Lottery Good Cause funding. Since Escapes launched in 2024, more than 250,000 free cinema tickets have been claimed by the public.
Speaking about the film recently, Coogan said: “24 Hour Party People is the work that is closest to my heart. I haven’t seen it for nearly 25 years. It captures the creative spirit of the town I am proud to have grown up in. I feel very sentimental about it all, which Tony Wilson would have deplored.”