Royal Film Performance

The Royal Film Performance is a trademarked event owned by The Film and Television Charity,^[1] formerly known as the Cinema & Television Benevolent Fund CTBF (from 1964 to 2017) and previously the Cinematograph Trade Benevolent Fund (from its inception in 1924).^[2] The event showcases a major film premiere and is attended by members of the British Royal Family. The proceeds from the event help the charity to offer financial support to people from the film, TV and cinema industries.

The event began in 1946, as the Royal Command Film Performance, with a screening of A Matter of Life and Death. The charity first received Royal Patronage in 1936, and so the idea of a Royal screening was born. The original date of the first event was 18 October 1939 and it was to be called the Royal Cine-Variety Performance, but it was postponed due to the outbreak of World War II.

The "Royal Command" name was changed from 1949, to Royal Film Performance, on the basis that the choice of film was that of the CTBF rather than the Royal Family.^[3] There was no performance between 2015 and 2019 while the CTBF was reformed as The Film and Television Charity.^[4] There was no event in 2020 or 2021 due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.

The most recent Royal Film Performance was the global premiere of Ridley Scott's Gladiator II at the Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on 13 November 2024. The event was attended by His Majesty King Charles III. Queen Camilla planned to attend with the King but ultimately cancelled due to a chest infection.

History of events

Number	Date	Title	Venue	Attendees
72	13 November 2024	Gladiator II[5]	Odeon Luxe Leicester Square[6]	Charles III[7]
71	19 May 2022[8]	Top Gun: Maverick	Odeon Luxe Leicester Square	William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales[9]
70	4 December 2019	1917	Odeon Luxe Leicester Square[10]	Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall[11]
69	26 October 2015	Spectre	Royal Albert Hall[12]	Prince William, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry[13]
68	17 February 2015	The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel	Odeon Leicester Square[14][15]	Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall[16]
67	5 December 2013	Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom	Odeon Leicester Square[17]	Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge[18]
66	12 December 2012	The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	Odeon Leicester Square[19]	Prince William[20]
65	28 November 2011	Hugo	Odeon Leicester Square[21]	Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall[22]
64	30 November 2010	The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader[23]	Odeon Leicester Square	Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[24]
63	24 November 2009	The Lovely Bones[25][26]	Odeon Leicester Square	Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall[27]
62	17 November 2008	A Bunch of Amateurs	Odeon Leicester Square[28]	Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[29]
61	19 February 2008	The Other Boleyn Girl	Odeon Leicester Square[30]	Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall[31]
60	14 November 2006	Casino Royale	Odeon Leicester Square[32]	Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[33]
59	7 December 2005	The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe	Royal Albert Hall[34]	Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall[35]
58	8 November 2004	Ladies in Lavender	Odeon Leicester Square	Elizabeth II[36]
57	17 November 2003	Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World		Prince Charles[37]
56	18 November 2002	Die Another Day[38]	Royal Albert Hall[39]	Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[40]
55	2001	Ali		Prince Charles[41]
54	2000	How the Grinch Stole Christmas		Elizabeth II[42]
53	14 July 1999	Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace	Odeon Leicester Square[43]	Prince Charles[44]
52	1998	The Parent Trap		Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[45][46]
51	1997	Titanic		Prince Charles[47]
50	1996	True Blue
49	1995	French Kiss
48	1994	Miracle on 34th Street	Odeon Leicester Square	Elizabeth II[48]
47	1993	The Man Without a Face
46	1992	Chaplin
45	1991	Hot Shots!
44	1990	Always
43	1989	Madame Sousatzka
42	1988	Empire of the Sun
41	1987	84 Charing Cross Road
40	1986	White Nights
39	1985	A Passage to India
38	1984	The Dresser
37	1983	Table for Five
36	1982	Evil Under the Sun
35	1981	Chariots of Fire
34	1980	Kramer vs. Kramer
33	1979	California Suite
32	1978	Close Encounters of the Third Kind
31	30 March 1977	Silver Streak	Odeon Leicester Square[49][50]
30	24 March 1976	The Slipper and the Rose	Odeon Leicester Square[51][52]
29	17 March 1975	Funny Lady	Odeon Leicester Square[53][54]
28	25 March 1974	The Three Musketeers	Odeon Leicester Square[55]
27	26 March 1973	Lost Horizon	Odeon Leicester Square[56]
26	27 March 1972	Mary, Queen of Scots	Odeon Leicester Square[57][58]
25	8 March 1971	Love Story	Odeon Leicester Square[59]
24	23 February 1970	Anne of the Thousand Days	Odeon Leicester Square[60]
23	24 February 1969	The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie	Odeon Leicester Square[61]
22	4 March 1968	Romeo and Juliet	Odeon Leicester Square[62]
21	27 February 1967	The Taming of the Shrew	Odeon Leicester Square[63]
20	14 March 1966	Born Free (second feature: Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree)	Odeon Leicester Square[64][65]
19	15 February 1965	Lord Jim	Odeon Leicester Square[66]
18	24 February 1964	Move Over, Darling[67]	Odeon Leicester Square
17	18 March 1963	Sammy Going South	Odeon Leicester Square[68]
16	26 February 1962	West Side Story	Odeon Leicester Square[69]
15	20 February 1961	The Facts of Life	Odeon Leicester Square[70]
14	28 March 1960	The Last Angry Man	Odeon Leicester Square[71]
13	2 February 1959	The Horse's Mouth	Empire, Leicester Square[72]
12	4 November 1957	Les Girls	Odeon Leicester Square[73]
11	29 October 1956	The Battle of the River Plate	Empire, Leicester Square[74]
10	31 October 1955	To Catch a Thief	Odeon Leicester Square	Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[75]
9	15 November 1954	Beau Brummell	Empire, Leicester Square	Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Margaret[76]
8	26 October 1953	Rob Roy	Odeon Leicester Square	Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Margaret[77]
7	27 October 1952	Because You're Mine	Empire, Leicester Square	Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Margaret[78]
6	5 November 1951	Where No Vultures Fly	Odeon Leicester Square[79]	Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret[80]
5	30 October 1950	The Mudlark	Empire, Leicester Square	George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret[81]
4	17 November 1949	The Forsyte Saga	Odeon Marble Arch	George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret[82]
3	29 November 1948	Scott of the Antarctic	Empire, Leicester Square	Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh[83]
2	25 November 1947	The Bishop's Wife	Odeon Leicester Square[84]	George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret, Queen of Denmark and King Michael I of Romania[85]
1	1 November 1946	A Matter of Life and Death	Empire, Leicester Square[86]	George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret[87]