BFI National Archive | Heritage Open Day

IMPORTANT TICKET INFORMATION

Your entrance ticket will give you an hour-long time slot for entry. Once inside the Conservation Centre you will be able to stay as long as you like. The last time slot will be 2.30pm - 3.30pm and the building will close at 4.00pm.

Due to capacity constraints within certain areas of the Conservation Centre, a number of the talks during the day will require additional tickets. These tickets have now sold out, however, we do expect some drop-off on the day and will be running standby queues. All other displays, demos and talks are included in your entry ticket and do not need to be booked in advance. 

If you have any questions about booking, please email us at HOD@bfi.org.uk

In the 90th year of the BFI National Archive, see the specialist skills and knowledge involved in preserving the UK's screen heritage. We will host tours, demos and exhibits, all celebrating the BFI collection and the people who work to maintain it.

On 21st September 2025 the British Film Institute will be opening the doors to the John Paul Getty Jnr Conservation Centre for another year, providing rare access to the specialist skills, technology and stores which support the conservation and restoration of the BFI National Collection.

Inside the Archive, you will see technical demonstrations and displays detailing the many areas of work at the BFI National Archive, including film, video and television preservation, Special Collections (comprising stills, posters, scripts and more), collections development, digital preservation, the film vaults and film projection. There will be talks from our curatorial and library teams as well as an opportunity to learn more (and have a play!) with BFI Replay - a free-to-access digital archive exclusively available in UK public libraries.

Our friends from the Hospice of St Francis will be on site selling refreshments so you can relax with tea and cake after your visit and help to support an essential local charity.

If you have any access requirements you'd like to let us know about, please email HOD@bfi.org.uk

Talks & Tours requiring additional tickets:

Due to capacity constraints within the Conservation Centre, a number of the talks during the day will require additional tickets. These tickets have now sold out. 

Special Collections Talk

Our Special Collections includes stills, posters, costume and production designs, promotional material and scripts. You will see a small curated selection from this collection and a talk around the history of each item.

Film Vault Tour

See the inside of our huge film vault which contains various gauges of safety film (either cellulose acetate or polyester) at a controlled temperature of 12-15 degrees with RH 35%. A member of the BFI National Archive team will give an informative talk about the vault and there will be time for a selfie with some film can stacks!

Projection Talk

Our own on-site projection expert, Martin Coffill, will be giving a talk on the history of film on film.

BFI National Archive on the Heritage Open Day website

Learn more about the BFI National Archive and its collections on the BFI website and through our Inside the Archive blog.

The Inside the Archive blog is supported by the BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding National Lottery funding.