Lady’s Secret Cinema in London Guide

It’s been a while since I last went to the movies. I spent so much time on airplanes over the past six months that I caught up on most of the new releases. But when a friend invited me to Secret Cinema in London last week, I jumped at the chance to see a mystery film in a festive atmosphere among the tunnels beneath Waterloo Station.

From my last trip to Secret Cinema, I knew that the event would involve large theatrical sets made to look like the setting of the film, scores of actors dressed like the characters, and good food from the region where the film took place.

I also knew that the film would be kept a secret until we sat down to watch it.

What I didn’t know is that I would guess the film before I even entered the tunnels. Prior to arriving, everyone was told to print out an identity card and dress in late 1950’s / early 1960’s clothing.

When I showed up, there was a line to get our papers checked. All around, actors dressed as gendarmes harassed groups of men in North African clothing.

Women in long white robes and face coverings stared at us as we inched closer to a barbed wire checkpoint.

As my eyes took in the scene, my brain pieced together the various elements: French North Africa, late 1950’s / early 1960’s, political unrest. It could only be one film.

When we passed through the checkpoint, we walked through a labyrinth of low-lit tunnels that Secret Cinema had transformed into a North African neighborhood.

There were high-up windows from which hung fresh laundry, small alcoves in which women sat embroidering cloth, offices from which men worked at lamp-lit desks, and open spaces in which children danced to live music.

As we ducked into one room, a man spoke to us in French. I responded to his greeting, and his eyes lit up. Parlez-vous francais? Oui. Suddenly he handed me a slip of paper and urged me to take it to the Milk Bar.

My friend and I found the bar, where the paper was handed over and hastily hidden. In exchange, I was handed an object, presumably a ‘bomb’, wrapped in paper.

I was told to hide it in my bag and take it to an address on a nearby street. This was done, and I was given another piece of paper, and another parcel that also seemed to contain ‘explosives’.

It all set the tone for the evening, and further persuaded me that my guess as to the title of the film was correct.

Once my clandestine duties were finished, my friend and I got chicken shawarma for dinner and then had some wine at the nearby Illegal Bar.

After a while, we meandered over to the French Embassy, where there was a man giving a speech about how the French military would prevail in Algeria.

Suddenly a loud noise rocked the tunnels and the lights flickered. Among the cries and chaos, a man dressed in North African attire urgently ushered us up a set of stairs, over a raised platform, and through the wall of a bedroom. On the other side was the theater.

We took our seats, bought some popcorn, and settled in to watch the Secret Cinema film. As soon as the opening credits rolled, I was assured that my guess had been correct. Can you guess the title?

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