TWO classic thriller movies with a preceding talk will be presented at Otley Courthouse in the New Year.

Otley Film Society is teaming up with the Home - Manchester States of Danger and Deceit and the BFI Thriller seasons for the Sunday, January 20 event.

The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum will start at 3.30pm while the evening presentation, The Vanishing, will be shown at 7.45pm.

The day will begin, though, at 2pm with an introductory talk - free to those with tickets for either film, both of which are rated 15 - on Political Thrillers in the 1970s.

The talk will be given by Andy Willis, senior lecturer in Media Studies at Salford University and Senior Visiting Curator for Film at HOME, and be followed by tea and cake.

Alex Leggat of Otley Film Society said: "We are particularly pleased that Andy Willis, who has been instrumental in putting the season together, will be giving an introductory talk.

"Before the film we are inviting the audience to have tea and cake to whet their appetites for the political thriller to come."

Mr Willis said: "I am thrilled to be working with HOME on this major film season.

"Young people in the UK today, as they were in the 1970s, are becoming increasingly interested in political issues."

Starring Angela Winkler, Mario Adorf and Dieter Laser, The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum shows what happens to a young woman after she meets a young man the authorities suspect of being a political activist.

The Vanishing, meanwhile, is a nightmarish psychological thriller revolving around two young lovers who are separated during a routine stop on an idyllic road trip.

Tickets are available from Otley Courthouse on (01943) 467466 and cost £5 per film or £8 for both films - or £4 per film and £6 for both for Otley Film Society members.