We move into the eighties today and the classic British movies just keep on coming.
This decade really saw British drama at the forefront with hard hitting stories and biopic films making waves at the box office.
We take a closer look at some of the British movies of the decade that lit up the big screen.
Chariots of Fire (1981)
Chariots of Fire is widely regarded as one of the best British movies of all time but it is also one of the best sport films to ever be released.
Directed by Hugh Hudson the movie followed two athletes at the Olympic Games in 1924: Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams.
The two English men both run for very different reasons - being a Christian Liddell runs for the glory of god while Abrahams, a Jew, tries to over come prejudice.
Chariots of Fire is a bold and intelligent movie and does nothing but inspire, not matter how many times you watch it.
The performances from Ben Cross and Ian Charlson as Abrahams and Liddell are just pitch perfect.
This film also features one of the most iconic sequences in history that is really brought to life by Vangelis's score.
Gandhi (1982)
Richard Attenborough was just a fine a director as he was an actor and his greatest moment behind the camera came in 1982 when he helmed Gandhi.
The movie chronicled the life of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, a lawyer and activist who become one of the most iconic figures of all time.
This is a truly sweeping movie that is one of the best bio-pics that has ever been released.
It was a life long dream of Attenborough's to make this story into a film and you ca see that this project has been crafted with a lot of love and care.
This is an engaging and beautiful movie from start to finish and is Attenborough's greatest moment in the director's chair.
Ben Kingsley is also outstanding in the title role and this is the part that he will forever be remembered.
Gandhi was nominated for eleven Oscars and won eight including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor.
Educating Rita (1983)
Terrific British movies came thick and fast in the eighties and it was 1983 when Educating Rita hit the big screen.
Directed by Lewis Gilbert the movie was based on the Willy Russell stage play - Russell himself adapted it for the big screen.
The movie saw Michael Caine join forces with Julie Walters for a film that follows a working class hairdresser who wants a university education.
The two central performances are really what drives this movie forward as they really are superb.
Walters' portrayal of Rita is a ballsy one as this is a woman who wants nothing more than to better herself. While Caine is also terrific as her tutor Dr Frank Bryant, an alcoholic.
Caine and Walters make a great team as a sweet relationship develops between these two central characters.
The movie was successful at the Baftas while Caine and Walters were both triumphant at the Golden Globes. They were both nominated for Oscars.
The Killing Fields (1984)
The Killing Fields was one of the most hard hitting, powerful and moving movies of the eighties as Roland Joffé made his feature film directorial debut.
The movie was an adaptation of an eyewitness magazine story by New York Times correspondent Sidney Schanberg during the pullout of U.S. troops from Vietnam.
During his time there he struck up a friendship with translator Dith Pran who he talks into staying in the country to give him news flashes - but he is captured and thrown into prison.
This was one of the most politically charged movies of the decade as it looked at tyrant Pol Pot's bloody "Year Zero" - his cleansing campaign, which claimed the lives of two million "undesirable" civilians.
Some of the imagery it just so hard hitting that you cannot failed to be moved by such a powerful story.
While this is a movie on an epic scale it is the very human moments that have the most impact - particularly this lasting friendship between these two men.
My Beautiful Laundrette (1985)
Stephen Frears has always been an interesting filmmaker and one of the best movies he has ever made comes in the form of My Beautiful Laundrette.
Released in 1985 the movie stars Daniel Day Lewis and Gordon Warnecke and is a movie that tackled sexuality and racism in a very full on way.
This is a movie that was no afraid to show the problems of 1980s society under a Thatcher government and how everyone was struggling to make ends meet - this resulted in racial tension and huge economic problems.
The two central characters; one white one Pakistani, must face some difficult choices after they begin a gay love affair.
My Beautiful Laundrette is a bold move from start to finish that was not afraid to shy away from the problems and the issues of the time.
Other great British movies of the eighties included Withnail & I, Gregory's Girl, The Long Good Friday, Local Hero and A Fish Called Wanda.