This event celebrates the canonisation of Derek Jarman into the Order of the Celluloid Knights and honours the radical cultural work of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence; an order of queer nuns whose activism was central to resisting government inaction on HIV/AIDS in late-1980s and early-1990s Britain.

Through protest, satire, ritual and public performance, the Sisters mobilised visibility as a tool of resistance.
 

Across the evening, we screen two films that trace this activist lineage, followed by a live conversation with Tom Stephan and Mother Mandragora.
 

Screenings
 

21st Century Nuns

dir. Tom Stephan (1994)

A BFI archive work featuring one of Derek Jarman’s final on-screen appearances, filmed at the Soho Valentine’s Day Parade. The film documents Jarman’s canonisation by the Sisters, where he was proclaimed Saint Derek of Dungeness of the Order of the Celluloid Knights.

​

Saintmaking

dir. Marco Alessi (2021) — with Closed Captions

A short documentary commissioned by The Guardian, Saintmaking recounts the story of Jarman’s canonisation as an act of queer world-building, grief, joy and resistance. Through archival materials and contemporary reflections, the film traces the lives of queer activism across generations.

​

Panel Discussion

​

Tom Stephan & Mother Mandragora

​

Following the screenings, director Tom Stephan and legendary Sister Mother Mandragora reflect on queer activism in 1990s London, the urgency of the AIDS crisis, and the making of 21st Century Nuns. The conversation closes with an audience Q&A.