A group of local organisers in Hebden Bridge held a free public showing of a real-life horror film last month. The film, The People’s Emergency Briefing, unsparingly lays bare evidence-based views from a series of subject-matter experts on the probable impact of climate change and fossil fuel use on us all in the immediate future. Not in some sci-fi futuristic dystopia. Now. Sceptics and non-believers, in particular, should not turn away.
Anyone who has read the government’s hair-raising 13-page national security assessment, published at the start of 2026, will be familiar with much of what this film contains.
In November 2025, a group of subject-matter specialists gave a briefing at Westminster Hall to an audience of 1200 politicians and other key leaders. Topics ranged from weather and climate to global tipping points for nature, impacts on food security, health, economics and national security. The film is a more ‘user-friendly’ version of that briefing, edited down to a manageable 50-minute running time, and intercut with celebrity reaction shots.
But it’s still gloves-off stuff, with no sugar-coating. And it’s not a barrel of laughs.
The need for community spirit
Hebden Bridge has first-hand knowledge of environmental disasters – and of how a community pulling together can make all the difference. On Boxing Day 2015, the valley flooded and the community came together in that emergency to work out how best to help one another. When it happened again in 2019, people were much better prepared to cope, and had a better understanding of how to deal with the consequences.
Calling on this same spirit of local cooperation, the organisers brought the townspeople together again, this time to start working out how to tackle another challenge.
Starting with a comparison to the second world war, when the country’s prospects looked bleak, the film forewarns us that we stand to face this again in our own and our children’s lifetimes unless we – and those in power – take action.
Chris Packham (the film’s presenter) said “Scientists are getting more alarmed, not less” and also that recent polls had shown that most people support urgent action.
Weather, climate, tipping points and food security
Professor Mike Berners Lee set the tone by saying the situation is “serious, urgent and affects us all here in the UK”, before introducing each short chapter of the film, sections that flow logically to provide a coherent overall narrative. (All the speakers’ briefing transcripts are available to read).
Professor Hayley Fowler discussed how extreme weather events are increasing globally, and faster. She spoke of “megafloods” and said that by 2050, one in four UK properties would be at risk of flooding. Winter rainfall is up 10%, wildfires and heatwaves are more common: “It’s getting worse fast and we’re not prepared”.
Professor Kevin Anderson informed us that carbon dioxide levels are rising at unprecedented rates, warning that “if we don’t stop burning fossil fuels the temperature will just keep rising”. He warned in no uncertain terms of “systemic collapse” if we don’t stay below – as most scientists now think we won’t – a 1.5ºC temperature increase for climate change.
Professor Tim Lenton was even more stark about climate change, saying it “eliminates the possibility to grow crops in the UK”, but that it’s possible to accelerate the ‘positive’ tipping points, like net zero.
Professor Paul Behrens added to the gloomy picture saying, of food security, “that era…is gone”. Three of the five worst cereal harvests in Britain have happened in the last decade, and farmers are already struggling. With 85% of agricultural land used for animals, we know that “we need a great food transformation” that involves moving to a plant-rich diet and reducing waste.
Health, national security, nature, economics and energy transition
Professor Hugh Montgomery said we need genuine action on health not “talk and homeopathy”, because climate change will collapse economies and that “Without action, these impacts are certainties”.
Lieutenant General Richard Nugee spoke of the impact of climate change on national security, because “the threat picture is shifting faster than we expected, and faster than we anticipated”. As resources become scarcer, the risk of conflict increases with “crises cascading together”. He reiterated a core military principle “Face the threat that is in front of you not the threat as you would wish it to be.” Wise words.
Professor Natalie Seddon pointed out that the UK is “one of the most nature-depleted nations on earth” where “one in six species risk extinction” and that we have already lost around 50% of our biodiversity.
Angela Francis put the economic position, saying that “the losers lobby the government” rather than diversify, but that change is possible with long-term vision. And that it’s the job of governments to intervene where the markets aren’t able to.
She pointed out the affordability of investing in net zero, as the initial costs of renewable energy become a financial saving over time. In a rare positive moment, she also claimed that we have been hitting our clean and renewable energy targets sooner than expected in the UK, which saves us money overall.
Tessa Khan further emphasised the need to transition away from fossil fuels, saying “none of this is impossible and the rewards on the other side are enormous”.
“A typical petrol car only uses about 25% of the energy in its fuel to actually move its wheels. Most is lost as heat, and the fossil fuel system as a whole wastes about two thirds of the raw energy that goes into it.”
Emotional impact and reactions
The screening hit hard emotionally: leaving at least one member of the audience in tears as the post-show breakout session asked us to consider: ‘What stayed with you most?’ and ‘What kind of response feels right for you now?’
One discussion near me was about the film’s lack of challenge of electricity as ‘clean’ energy while there are still significant concerns about pollution and exploitation (of humans and natural resources) in relation to power stations, and large-scale and vehicle batteries.
Even renewables are not without controversy, as Hebden Bridge residents know all too well from the massive wind farm proposal that risks destruction of unique protective peat bog carbon sinks on the moor tops above the town. Its Saudi-based owners would be able to extract the profits from the UK, leaving the environmental costs to be borne locally. Decades of repeated systemic failings in our utilities and infrastructure have seemingly not yet taught us to beware of the risks.
Perhaps the biggest danger, though, is that audiences who decide to see this film may tend to be self-selecting – people already interested and engaged in the issues, or at least willing to be open-minded.
Find a screening – show the film
The screenings need to be widespread to reach as many people as possible. There is a growing call for the film to be televised to reach its widest possible audience, with people encouraged to contact their MP to request it – as well as to discuss any of the other points.
The National Emergency Briefing features a wealth of resources, including toolkits for local organisers to hold their own screenings and encourage debate in their communities.
The Calderdale organisers’ next screening is on 21 May at Todmorden Community College at 7pm. Further dates are planned for Halifax and Rastrick.
York has a screening tomorrow (9 May) at Tempest Anderson Hall (Museum Gardens) at 2.30pm, followed by a panel discussion with guest speakers including Rachael Maskell MP.
For more details of screenings in your area, consult the screening map.
Finally, it’s important not to let this all feel overwhelming, so if there is a local Climate Café in your area it can be a good place to continue the conversation.
Friends of Bylines Network
There has never been a greater need for grassroots journalism that investigates the stories that really matter, holds power to account and champions the voices of everyday citizens. We are proudly powered by volunteers but what we do isn’t free.
STAND WITH US for independent, citizen-led journalism that makes democracy stronger, and you will even get some exclusive benefits.
