There was a glitzy turnout for Saturday night's gala opening of the 19th UK Jewish Film Festival at the BFI on the Southbank.

The film was Closer to the Moon, based on the true story of a bank robbery carried out by a group of Jewish friends in Romania in 1958, and those at the screening included some of its stars as well as actresses Maureen Lipman and Sarah Solemani, and film critic Jason Solomons. The film festival is showing 83 films over a 16-day period in London and four regional centres. Fifty of the films are UK premieres and the festival has a strong Israeli element.