Cinema has had a hugely influential role on global culture in the twentieth century at multiple levels: social, political, and educational. The part of British cinema in this has been controversial—often derided as a whole, but also vigorously celebrated, especially in terms of specific films and film-makers.

In this Very Short Introduction, Charles Barr considers films and filmmakers, and studios and sponsorship, against the wider view of changing artistic, socio-political, and industrial climates over the decades of the twentieth century. Considering British cinema in the wake of one of the most familiar of cinematic reference points—Alfred Hitchcock—Barr traces how British cinema has developed its own unique path, and has since been celebrated for its innovative approaches and distinctive artistic language.