Buster Keaton's The General

An unforgettable evening of laughter, live music and cinematic spectacle awaits at Bristol’s much-loved Silent Comedy Gala, the flagship event of the 23rd Slapstick Festival.

This year’s landmark Gala is headlined by Buster Keaton’s iconic masterpiece The General (1926). Consistently ranked among the greatest films ever made, it remains as exhilarating, inventive and funny today as it was a century ago.

Forget streaming. This is the way these films were meant to be experienced: on a giant cinema screen, surrounded by an audience sharing the laughter, with a spectacular live musical accompaniment that brings every moment thrillingly to life.

Performing live alongside the screen are the acclaimed European Silent Screen Virtuosi, led by internationally renowned silent-film musicians Maestro Günter A. Buchwald and Frank Bockius, recreating the unforgettable experience audiences enjoyed when these films were first released.

The evening also features two classic comedy shorts. Charlie Chaplin’s The Adventurer (1917) finds cinema’s greatest underdog in full flight, turning escape, romance and authority upside down with breathtaking comic invention. Meanwhile, Laurel & Hardy’s With Love and Hisses (1927) delivers military mayhem and comic confusion from comedy’s most beloved double act.

With special appearances and a few surprises along the way, the evening will be hosted by a special guest to be announced later this year. Previous Slapstick Gala hosts have included Victoria Wood, Hugh Bonneville, Martin Freeman, Stephen Mangan and many other celebrated names from the worlds of comedy, film and television.

If you’ve never experienced silent comedy with live music, you’re in for a treat. Funny, thrilling, moving and suitable for all ages, the Slapstick Silent Comedy Gala remains one of the highlights of Bristol’s cultural calendar and one of the most magical ways to experience classic cinema on the big screen.