BASINGSTOKE film fans are invited to experience the thrills of the silver screen in style while helping to raise vital funds for Pelican cancer charity.

The Pelican Film Society will showcase a range of art-house and classic films to be shown on the big screen at The Ark Conference Centre on the first Monday of each month, from September to July.

The new season starts on September 4, when Tom Hanks stars in the gripping biopic Sully - a true tale of the ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ when Captain Chelsey Sullenberger glided his disabled plane onto the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 aboard. The Eagle Huntress will be shown in October, and Lion in November.

The films are screened in the comfort of the Squire Theatre at the Ark, in Dinwoodie Drive, next to Basingstoke hospital.

Parking is free and visitors can also enjoy a delicious two-course meal before the show in the Blue Café Bar for just £14.50.

Annual membership is only £44, that’s £4 per film, and guests are welcome at just £6 per visit. All proceeds go to Pelican Cancer Foundation which funds clinical research into the treatment of “below the belt” cancers – bowel, bladder, prostate and liver.

Since 2003, the Film Society has raised more than £18,000, and £2,870 in the past year, for the charity, which is based at the Ark.

To join the Pelican Film Society, find out more or book for a film, visit pelicancancer.org/pelican-film-society.

To find out more about the Pelican Cancer Foundation, visit pelicancancer.org