Take Black Sheep with your popcorn

Black Sheep Brewery is supporting the Bradford International Film Festival, in a move which will give thirsty film-goers something different to accompany their popcorn.  

Featuring special guests like BAFTA-winning screenwriter Matt Greenhalgh and esteemed actor Sir Tom Courtenay, the festival has become a staple of British cinema since its inception 18 years ago. 

One of the largest film festivals in Britain, it represents cinema in a great variety of forms, genres and formats, and selects many new independent films from around the world that are exclusive to the festival.  

Opening on Thursday, 11 April at Bradford’s National Media Museum, the event will see a number of classic and contemporary films screened over a 10-day period, and will do so with Black Sheep as its official beer.  

Black Sheep Brewery Marketing Director Jo Theakston said: “The Bradford International Film Festival is a huge event which has become synonymous with British film and the region in general, and as such we are very excited to be supporting it.  

“Black Sheep’s presence at the festival will ensure that visitors from all over the world will get a real taste of Yorkshire.”  

Alongside being the official beer of the festival, the National Media Museum will also play host to a Black Sheep bar, allowing patrons to get a tantalising taste of the festival days before its opening.  

Tom Vincent, Co-Director of Bradford International Film Festival, said: “We are delighted to have Black Sheep on board for the event. The brewery shares a similar lifespan with ourselves, so it is nice to have two Yorkshire stalwarts of the last 20 years working together.  

“What’s more, a cultured festival requires a cultured drink!”     

The Black Sheep Brewery in Masham made its first beer in 1992 after being built up by Paul Theakston, whose family had brewed in the area for six generations.

In a world of ever increasing bland, mass-produced beer, Paul saw an opportunity to return to what his family had done best since 1827, making real beer in the time-honoured fashion.

An old maltings building, once part of Lightfoot's Brewery, became the brewery’s home. This landmark building, which stands high over the banks of the Ure, had fallen in to disrepair as years of neglect as a semi-redundant grainstore had taken its toll. Paul assembled a small team around him to fight the rats and build a traditional country brewery.

Black Sheep Ale at 4.4% ABV, now in an eco-friendly lightweight bottle, continues to maintain its presence among the top 10 premium bottled ale brands, and is available nationwide from virtually all the major supermarket retailers. It is a classic premium bitter, its character derived from the use of yorkshire square fermenters.