Pressure

Released: 7th September 2026. With a screenplay written by Horace Ové and fellow Trinidadian author Sam Selvon, Pressure tells the story of Tony, a bright school-leaver and son of West Indian immigrants, who finds himself torn between his parents' church-going conformity and his brother's Black Power militancy. A groundbreaking and authentic exploration of the anxieties of an emerging second-generation of West Indians in Britain, Pressure (1975) is a significant title in the history of British Cinema, and remains as relevant now as it ever was, with its themes of police corruption, discrimination and employment on an individual and institutional level. Originally funded by the BFI Production Board and heralded as the first full-length Black British film, Horace Ové’s masterpiece Pressure has been restored by the BFI National Archive and The Film Foundation. Extras Restored in 4K by the BFI and The Film Foundation and presented in High Definition Audio commentary with producer Robert Buckler and actor Herbert Norville, moderated by Marc David Jacobs Baldwin’s N***** (1969, 46 mins): Ové’s striking portrait of the writer James Baldwin at his sharp-witted best, addressing a group of West Indian students in 1960s London Horace Ové on Pressure(2005, 36 mins): in this archive interview the acclaimed director discusses his landmark film with future BFI Executive Director for Public Programmes and Audiences, Jason Wood PressureQ&A (2023, 17 mins): academic Dr Clive Nwonka, actor Herbert Norville, producer Annabelle Alcazar, writer Caryl Phillips and filmmaker Rhea Storr, discuss Horace Ové's Pressure Horace Ové: Reflecting the People – A Career Retrospective (2023, 77 mins): producers Annabelle Alcazar, Peter Ansorge, Tara Prem and Marcus Ryder, chair of the Film and TV Charity, discuss the life, work and legacy of filmmaker Horace Ové Ten Bob in Winter (1963, 12 mins): Lloyd Rekord’s early classic of Black British cinema about the intriguing social dynamics that arise as a ten shilling note is passed around the Black community Jemima + Johnny (1966, 30 mins): the friendship of a young white boy and a Black girl reaches out across the generations in this uplifting mid-60s short set in Notting Hill, directed by South African-born actor and anti-Apartheid activist Lionel Ngakane Rerelease trailer (2023, 2 mins)  Includes optional English descriptive subtitles Includes optional audio description track **FIRST PRESSING ONLY** Illustrated booklet featuring new writingby Arike Oke and Kevin Le Gendre