Beautiful Thing (film)

Beautiful Thing is a 1996 British romantic comedy coming-of-age film directed by Hettie MacDonald and released by Channel 4 Films. The screenplay was written by Jonathan Harvey based on his own original play of the same name. The film stars Linda Henry, Glen Berry, Scott Neal, Tameka Empson and Ben Daniels. The film was the cinema debuts of Harvey, MacDonald, and actors Berry, Neal and Empson.

The film was originally intended for television broadcast only, but it was so well-received that it was subsequently released in UK cinemas on 14 June 1996. The atmosphere of the film is heavily influenced by a soundtrack consisting almost entirely of the music of The Mamas & the Papas and Mama Cass Elliot.

The movie received "generally positive" reviews, and is often ranked as one of the best LGBTQ films. In 2016, British playwright Fin Kennedy, said that twenty years later, the story told is still held in "near-universal affection among audiences."