BFI Announces Nationwide Tour of Restored 1920s Silent Films with Live Piano Accompaniment and Family-Friendly Matinees
15 October 2026
The BFI's nationwide tour showcases meticulously restored 1920s silent films by Alfred Hitchcock. The nine surviving films date from 1925 to 1929, and will be screened with live piano accompaniment in various cities. The restored collection includes *The Pleasure Garden*, *The Mountain Eagle*, *The Farmer’s Wife* and *Easy Virtue*.
The Hitchcock 9 Tour sets out from London. The goal is to bring the master of suspense's silent works to new audiences.
The restoration process prioritized the best surviving source materials, marking the BFI's most extensive restoration effort to date. The culmination of a three-year undertaking, the nine films include *Downhill*, *The Lodger*, *The Ring* and *The Manxman*. One notable absence is *The Mountain Eagle*, which remains lost.
The tour schedule includes screenings in a wide range of venues, from historic theaters to neighborhood cinemas. Unique to the tour are family-friendly matinee screenings, introduced to make classic films more accessible to younger audiences.
The tour's live piano accompaniment features period-style scores. Some accompanists have long-standing ties to the tradition, such as Stephen Horne, who composed for several restorations. The music is essential to silent film's essence, and live performance adds energy to each screening.
Expanding silent cinema's reach
The Hitchcock 9 tour continues the BFI's commitment to silent film programming. The works include restored 1922 documentaries *London's Contrasts* and *Wonderful London*, among other films from the archive.
The tour not only showcases restored films, but prompts discussion about silent cinema's relevance today. The BFI challenges assumptions about these works being mere artifacts, finding new ways to connect them with modern audiences.
This follows the 2012 success of restored Hogarth revue screenings. The 2013 international tour of Hitchcock silents reached 15 countries, from the Netherlands to Hong Kong. While gaining global attention, the project's core mission remains introducing fresh eyes to this foundational era of cinema.