Cinema-goers will have to set aside eight hours if they want to watch a newly restored 89-year-old film about Napoleon.
The BFI National Archive has spent 50 years working on a project to bring Abel Gance's Napoleon back to the big screen.
Running at some five-and-a-half hours on screen, the 1927 film demands a huge investment of resources - from projectionists, musicians, conductor and audiences, and in a live performance with intervals the experience adds up to more than eight hours from start to finish.
Screenings where there is no live orchestra are estimated to run to around seven hours, as breaks will be needed for the viewers' comfort.
The film features full-scale historical recreations of episodes from the personal and political life of Napoleon, from the French Revolution to the arrival of French troops in Italy marking the beginning of the first Italian campaign of 1796.
From autumn 2016, audiences will be able to experience this cinematic masterpiece with Carl Davis's score - the longest ever composed for a silent film - when the film goes on theatrical release in UK cinemas.
The film was first presented, partially restored, at the BFI London Film Festival in 1980.
The latest digital restoration of Napoleon will have its premiere screening with a live performance by the Philharmonia Orchestra of Davis's score in early November at the Royal Festival Hall.
It is the most complete version of the film available, compiled by Academy Award-winning film-maker, archivist and historian Kevin Brownlow, who spent more than 50 years tracking down surviving prints from archives around the world since he first saw a 9.5mm version as a schoolboy in 1954.
He worked with the BFI National Archive on a series of restorations.
Mr Brownlow said: "This is a tremendous step forward for film history."
The film will also be available on BFI DVD/Blu-ray and BFI Player.
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