Explore the Planetarium’s Space exhibition before the screening and see if you’re cut out for a life in space, then recline in this unique screening space. As the lights dim, your journey will begin with a tour of the Solar System in a Planetarium star show - the perfect way to set the scene for your film…
The epic monster-brawling showdown Pacific Rim screens at the Planetarium this December. Guillermo del Toro’s love letter to classic kaiju films is a spectacle for the big screen - with stunning action sequences, nostalgic nods to the giant movie monsters of old, and a big heart at its mechanical core - that will leave your inner child grinning from ear to ear.
As we move into December, we’re presenting a 20th anniversary screening of War Of The Worlds. Steven Spielberg masterfully adapts the seminal H.G. Wells novel for the 21st Century, bringing the scale of the alien invasion to life without losing sight of the existential dread of the source material. Harrowing and haunting, it’s another example of Spielberg’s proficiency in producing PG-13 horror (or 12-rated for us Brits!).
Our final night at the Planetarium in 2025 begins with a 20th anniversary screening of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge Of The Sith. The final film of the prequel trilogy details Anakin Skywalker’s tragic turn to the Dark Side of the Force, and the origins of one of cinema’s all-time greatest villains… It’s a space opera spectacle for the ages!
Due to phenomenal demand, we’re bringing more screenings of Interstellar to the Planetarium this autumn, including a final screening in the buildup to Christmas. A film this epic was made for the big screen, and this screening includes some of the most breathtaking scenes restored to their IMAX ratios for an extra-detailed viewing.
We’re starting our 2026 season at the Planetarium with the modern epic Ad Astra. Brad Pitt gives a career-high performance as the traumatised astronaut tasked with saving the Solar System from a mysterious threat that may be linked to his father’s disappearance, in an understated but quietly powerful story that will make you think deeply about the worlds beyond our horizons. If you’re a fan of Interstellar and Gravity, this is an underrated contemporary classic with a whole swathe of award wins and nominations under its belt that drifted under the radar just before the pandemic - don’t miss it back on the big screen this time round!
Due to phenomenal demand in Autumn 2025, we’re bringing several more screenings of Interstellar to the Planetarium in Q1 of 2026, including a midweek January screening! A film this epic was made for the big screen, and this screening includes some of the most breathtaking scenes restored to their IMAX ratios for an extra-detailed viewing.
Due to phenomenal demand in Autumn 2025, we’re bringing several more screenings of Interstellar to the Planetarium in Q1 of 2026, including a January double bill! A film this epic was made for the big screen, and this screening includes some of the most breathtaking scenes restored to their IMAX ratios for an extra-detailed viewing.
Due to phenomenal demand in Autumn 2025, we’re bringing several more screenings of Interstellar to the Planetarium in Q1 of 2026, including a January double bill! A film this epic was made for the big screen, and this screening includes some of the most breathtaking scenes restored to their IMAX ratios for an extra-detailed viewing.
The sweetest robot film is back in time for Valentine’s weekend! we’re presenting another screening of the perennial Festival favourite WALL•E this February. The delightful sci-fi misadventure is both an epic voyage into humanity’s future, and a nod to silent comedy cinema. It’s perfect for a date night, or for the entire family.
Due to phenomenal demand in Autumn 2025, we’re bringing several more screenings of Interstellar to the Planetarium in Q1 of 2026, including a special Valentine’s weekend screening! A film this epic was made for the big screen, and this screening includes some of the most breathtaking scenes restored to their IMAX ratios for an extra-detailed viewing.
One of the Festival’s heroes, the great Mel Brooks, will be celebrating his 100th birthday in 2026, so we’ll be bringing some of his finest films to the Festival’s programme over the course of the year, from firm favourites to titles we’ve never screened before. As part of this programming, we’ll be bringing the delightfully daft Spaceballs to the Planetarium. Mel Brooks’ idiosyncratic parody of Star Wars and the wider sci-fi genre is packed with his trademark zany humour, and a host of memorable characters from Lord Dark Helmet to Pizza the Hutt…!
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This March, we’re bringing a double bill of Arnie-led sci-fi action to the Planetarium, starting with the seminal Total Recall. Inspired by a Philip K. Dick story and directed by Starship Troopers director Paul Verhoeven, it’s an Oscar-winning mind-bender that melds blockbuster action with cerebral concepts and scathing satire (plus a giddy side-serving of the expected Arnie carnage!). It was also one of the last major Hollywood releases to rely solely on practical special effects, making it a homage to the craft of old school moviemaking through a 21st Century lens.
This March, we’re bringing a double bill of Arnie-led sci-fi action to the Planetarium, concluding with James Cameron’s mighty Terminator 2: Judgment Day, one of our most-requested titles! With its astonishing special effects, exhilarating plot, compelling characters and expansion of the lore of the first film, this is one of the rare sequels that surpasses the original, and remains one of the definitive action/sci-fi films 35 years since it first hit cinemas. Hasta la vista, baby!
Our March screenings at the Planetarium continue with a dose of British sci-fi nostalgia: it’s a digitally restored, 60th anniversary screening of Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 A.D. Hammer/Star Wars legend Peter Cushing returns in this sequel as the titular Doctor, with Bernard Cribbins joining in the misadventure as a policeman who mistakes the TARDIS for an actual police box and gets embroiled in a desperate bid to foil the Daleks’ most dastardly plot yet! This expansion of the Whoniverse for the 60s silver screen is the perfect watch for any fan of the beloved series, as well as anyone who enjoys classic science fiction with a healthy dose of British idiosyncrasies.
Our March screenings at the Planetarium conclude with a 40th anniversary screening of the sci-fi/fantasy epic Highlander. With its sprawling story spanning centuries, sword-and-sorcery spin on science fiction, and legendary soundtrack by Queen, it’s a cornerstone of 80s pop culture in all its glorious, cheesy glory - throw in Sean Connery as an immortal swordsman and location shoots from Manhattan to the Scottish Highlands, and you’ve got yourself a bona fide cult classic that’s still full of life after four decades!
For the first time in five years, we’re excited to be bringing back Alfonso Cuarón’s Oscar-winning space thriller Gravity to the Planetarium. One of the finest sci-fi films of the 21st Century to date, it’s a feat of technological filmmaking marvel and an exhilarating, white-knuckle watch. Against the Planetarium’s stunning backdrop, and with a Planetarium space show beforehand, you’ll really feel like you’ve gone out of this world…
Due to phenomenal demand in Autumn 2025, we’re bringing several more screenings of Interstellar to the Planetarium in early 2026, including this screening in April. A film this epic was made for the big screen, and this screening includes some of the most breathtaking scenes restored to their IMAX ratios for an extra-detailed viewing.
We’re heating things up at the Planetarium in April with a crossover fantasy double bill celebrating dragons on the big screen! First up is a 30th anniversary screening of Dragonheart. Sean Connery voices the last of the dragons in this heartwarming tale of misadventure, unlikely friendship and duty - it’s a loving homage to some of the swords-and-sorcery classics as well as buddy comedies from Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid onwards, with Oscar-nominated special effects utilising full CGI characters that helped pave the way for the likes of Gollum in The Lord Of The Rings. One for the whole family, especially the millennial inner child…!
We’re heating things up at the Planetarium in April with a crossover fantasy double bill celebrating dragons on the big screen! Second up is the post-apocalyptic Reign Of Fire. In a timeline where dragons have taken over the planet thanks to - you guessed it - Transport For London’s ineptitude, it’s up to Christian Bale and Matthew McConaughey to fight back against their fire-breathing reptilian overlords. If a mashup of Skyrim, Arthurian legend and 28 Days Later sounds like exactly what’s been missing from your life, then get your tickets for this instant cult classic that deserves to been on a screen the size of the Planetarium’s!
This May, we’ll be celebrating two very different alien invasion films that both happen to be turning 30 in 2026… First up it’s Tim Burton’s Mars Attacks!. We’ve long been fans of Mr Burton’s filmography, but this is our first ever time screening his deliciously dark satire, which feels like a giddy mix of 50s B-movies and Dr Strangelove. Full of famous faces and plenty of laser beam-induced chaos, it’s a campy cult classic that will leave you in shock, awe - and going “Hey, what’s Tom Jones doing here…?”
This May, we’ll be celebrating two very different alien invasion films that both happen to be turning 30 in 2026… Second up is Roland Emmerich’s Oscar-winning blockbuster Independence Day. It’s the perfect blend of everything we love about 90s cinema: an epic scale, an eclectic all-star ensemble cast, Jeff Goldblum playing a roguish nerd, and high-octane action sequences served up with a healthy dose of Hollywoods cheese!
