The world-renowned Banff Mountain Film Festival (BMFF) returns to UK shores in 2013, visiting Ireland for the first time on its largest World Tour to date. Through the big screen, audiences are offered an intense and inspiring experience, as the films take them around the globe alongside some extraordinary adventurers.

BMFF is an international film competition hosted by The Banff Centre, based in the Canadian Rockies, and accepts over 300 entries every year. Following the original screenings that take place every autumn, 25 award-winning films and audience favourites are selected for the World Tour. To give you an indication of the tour’s mind-blowing popularity, it now visits nearly 400 communities across 35 countries!

There are 35 screenings planned in UK alone, expected to attract over 16,000 adventure lovers and promising even more sold out shows than last year. Each location has handpicked films that best match local interests, from adrenaline-raising adventure-sport shorts to longer, heart-warming tales of environment and culture.

Among the exhilarating and provocative titles to hit UK theatres this winter, highlights include:

CROSSING THE ICE – Two Australians set off across the ice in a bid to be the first adventurers to walk unsupported from the coastline of Antarctica to the South Pole and back again. This epic expedition is an immensely emotional and physical struggle for the duo and concludes with an incredibly surprising and deeply moving twist.

THE GIMP MONKEYS – What has four legs, five arms, and three heads? The Gimp Monkeys! Three climbers are linked by their missing limbs, but it is their shared passion for climbing that pushes them towards an improbable goal – to achieve the first all-disabled ascent of Yosemite National Park’s iconic El Capitan. A refreshingly humorous film that portrays what’s possible with the right combination of guts, determination and climbing ability

NDIZOTHEKA – From opposite corners of the earth, two men are united by a common dream: to be the first to paraglide from Mount Mulanje, Malawi’s highest peak. Adding another dimension to this already ambitious mission, audiences discover that one has never paraglided before. Illuminating Malawian culture, this uplifting story shows us what really is possible as both men confront and overcome the challenges on their shared journey.

Now in its fourth year, the BMFF UK and Ireland tour is so much more than a series of film nights. The events are fun, social evenings where outdoor lovers of all backgrounds and ages come together to celebrate mountain culture. While the inspirational films are incentive enough, audiences also have a chance to win some lucrative prizes provided by the tour’s sponsors.

This year BMFF is delighted to be working with Arc’teryx as the Presenting Partner of the 2013 UK and Ireland Tour. The festival’s organisers are also pleased to welcome Patagonia as a new Principal Partner to the 2013 Tour as well as Cotswold Outdoor, Buff, Keen and Banff Lake Louise Tourism. The upcoming Tour is also supported by Sea to Summit, Black Diamond, World Expeditions, Clif Bar and Artemis.

Audiences will also have the opportunity to enjoy a photography exhibition from award winning wildlife photographer, Jasper Doest.

UK and Ireland Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour, Inverness
Date: 31 January 2013
Venue: Eden Court , Inverness
Times: 1930 (doors and bar opens at 1830)
Tickets: £13/£10 concession
For tickets: www.banff-uk.com

UK and Ireland 2013 Tour dates are as follows:

• 25 January Forum Theatre, Malvern

• 26 January The Hall Venue Cymru, Llandudno

• 30 January Mitchell Library Theatre, Glasgow

• 31 January Eden Court Theatre, Inverness

• 1 February The Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh

• 2 February The Playhouse, Whitley Bay/Newcastle

• 6-7 February The Carriageworks, Leeds

• 8 February Theatre by the Lake, Keswick

• 9 February The Crescent Theatre, Birmingham

• 13 February Gulbenkian Theatre, Canterbury

• 15 February Komedia, Bath

• 16 February Lighthouse Theatre, Poole

• 21 February- 1 March Union Chapel, London

• 2 March The Plaza, Stockport

• 7 March The Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl/Bridgend

• 8 March The Ffwrnes, Llanelli

• 9 March Corn Exchange, Brighton

• 14 March Dorking Halls, Dorking

• 15 March Gatehouse Theatre, Stafford

• 16 March Plaza Cinema, Liverpool

• 20 March OPEN Theatre, Norwich

• 21 March City Hall, Salisbury

• 22 March Corn Exchange, Exeter

• 23 March Victoria Rooms, Bristol

• 5 April Hall for Cornwall, Truro

• 10 April Devere Hall, Cork

• 11 April The Set, Kilkenny

• 12 April Awesome Walls, Dublin

• 13 April Waterfront, Belfast

Source: Neil Teasdale