Through close textual and contextual analysis of British films spanning a century, this book explores how pupils, teachers and secondary education in general have been represented on the British screen.

Section 1 - Introduction.- Chapter 1: The School Film: A British Genre?.- Section 2 – The Early Years Programme (1900-45).- Chapter 2 – The Early Public School Film.- Induction:.- Hitchcock and Co. – Down with School!:.- Hilton and Co. – Hurray for School!:.- The Boys’ Public School Carnivalesque.- Section 3 – The Middle Years Programme (1945-70).- Chapter 3 – The Post-War Public School.- The Right Stuff:.- The Wrong Woman:.- The Hay School:.- The Girls’ Public School Carnivalesque:.- (Poetic) Realism and Tinsel.- Chapter 4 – The Post-War State School Film.- The Right Stuff:.- The Wrong Woman:.- Tinsel and Realism:.- Approved School.- Section 4 - The Final Years Programme (1970-    ).- Chapter 5 – The Contemporary School Film.- Fright School:.- Co-ed Carnivalesque (mostly):.- Queer School:.- Approved and Special School:.- Magic School.- 5. CONCLUSION.- Chapter 6 - The School Film: A British Genre

Through close textual and contextual analysis of British films spanning a century, this book explores how pupils, teachers and secondary education in general have been represented on the British screen. The author addresses a number of topics including the nature of public (fee-paying) and state schooling; the values of special, single-sex and co-education; the role of male and female teachers; and the nature of childhood and adolescence itself. From the silents of Hitchcock to the sorcery of Harry Potter, British cinema’s continued explorations of school life highlights its importance in the nation’s everyday experience and imaginary landscape. Beyond this, the school film, varying in scope from low-budget exploitation to Hollywood-financed blockbusters, serves both as a prism through which one can trace major shifts in the British film industry and as a barometer of the social and cultural concerns of the cinema-going public. This applies especially for gender, race and, in all senses, class.
Stephen Glynn has taught in British secondary schools for over thirty years and is currently an Associate Research Fellow at De Montfort University. He has published widely on British cinema, including Palgrave’s The British Pop Music Film: The Beatles and Beyond (2013)

Analyses cinematic representations of British secondary education from silent cinema to the present day Uses British schools as an accessible institutional structure through which to explore wider issues such as class, gender and race Features close textual analysis, production and reception histories