So you missed the Venice Film Festival. (Again).

No great loss. The only place worth being seen there anyway (other than on the red carpet) is around the pool at The Cipriani. And unless you are a) Harvey Weinstein or b) a three-time Oscar winner, you won’t have a hope in hell of even getting close to it.

But you won’t need to. Anthony Minghella and Antonio Carluccio are staging an Italian film festival here in London. From 7 to 15 September, you can revel in the passion-filled works of Visconti, Moretti and Fellini at the Everyman Cinema Club. Rekindle your love for classics such as Il Gattopardo, La Strada, Il Postino and Caro Diario. There are two screenings every evening, and you get a glass of prosecco and a few antipasti in with the bargain.

Sure, you’ll miss the splendour of the Palazzo Ducale and San Marco on your way to Hampstead, but you’ll still be able to experience that whole ‘Italians do it better’ thing.

And you won’t get mauled by pigeons, tourists or cheesy gondoliers in the process.

Everyman Cinema Club, 5 Holly Bush Vale, Hampstead, NW3 (0870 066 4777 or everymancinema.com).