Picnic At Hanging Rock12A

Directed by Peter Weir | Australia | 1975 | 1h 48m | Starring Rachel Roberts, Anne-Louise Lambert, Vivean Gray, Helen Morse, Tony Llewellyn-Jones

In the early 1900s, Miranda attends a girls boarding school in Australia. One Valentine’s Day, the school’s typically strict headmistress treats the girls to a picnic field trip to an unusual but scenic volcanic formation called Hanging Rock. Despite rules against it, Miranda and several other girls venture off. It’s not until the end of the day that the faculty realises the girls and one of the teachers have disappeared mysteriously. Peter Weir’s wonderfully enigmatic film, with its ethereal cinematography and ghostly, foreboding atmosphere helped usher in a new era of Australian cinema.

Join us on Sunday 18th May (3pm) for a screening introduced by film lecturer Dr Andrew Webber.

Classic Season: Dreamscapes

Reviews

‘The film’s mystery still shimmers.’
★★★★★
Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

‘The “readings” are endless, the mood impossibly eerie and the legacy untouchable.’
★★★★★
Kevin Maher, The Times

Sorry - you missed it!

We showed Picnic At Hanging Rock between May 18, 2025 and May 19, 2025.

Join our mailing list and we'll make sure you always know what's on and when.

What else is on?

Today (Saturday 6th June)
Find out more

20:30

The Christophers 15
1h 40m
A reclusive London artist (Ian McKellen) becomes the target of a scheme by his estranged children, who recruit a young painter (Michaela Coel) to infiltrate his home and uncover hidden works. Steven Soderbergh’s darkly comic chamber piece explores deception, legacy and artistic value.

Book here


Tomorrow (Sunday 7th June)
Find out more

14:30

The Red Shoes PG
2h 15m
Director's Cuts: Lucile Hadžihalilović
The 75th anniversary of an undisputed masterpiece of British cinema. Powell and Pressburger’s visually ravishing fantasia about a young ballerina caught between her desire to dance and her yearning for love.

Book here

Find out more

17:30

The Christophers 15
1h 40m
A reclusive London artist (Ian McKellen) becomes the target of a scheme by his estranged children, who recruit a young painter (Michaela Coel) to infiltrate his home and uncover hidden works. Steven Soderbergh’s darkly comic chamber piece explores deception, legacy and artistic value.

Book here

Find out more

20:00

Orphan 15
2h 13m | Hungarian w/ English subtitles
In Budapest, 1957, a Jewish boy awaiting his father’s return from the camps is confronted by a mysterious man claiming to be his real parent. Oscar-winner László Nemes (Son of Saul) directs this powerful drama about identity, trauma and postwar Hungary.

Book here


See all upcoming films

Plan your visit

Our beautiful art deco inspired auditorium can be found just off East Oxford's Cowley Road.We are open 7 days a week. We open the cinema and box office 30 minutes before the scheduled start time of each film, and the Box Office then closes 10 minutes after the film starts. We only show a few adverts – less than most cinemas – and we only play a couple of trailers, so please don’t be late as the film itself starts very close to the advertised time!

Find out more