David Lean’s sweeping war epic Lawrence of Arabia was today named the greatest British movie of all time.

The 1962 desert drama, starring Peter O’Toole and Omar Sharif, topped a list of the 100 top British films published by Empire magazine.

Second place went to Life of Brian, the controversial 1979 comedy made by the Monty Python team, with the 1948 dark ballet drama The Red Shoes in third.

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The top five is completed by 1973 horror Don’t Look Now and Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson’s railway station romance Brief Encounter, made in 1945.

The top 100 also includes Atonement, shot at Stokesay Court near Craven Arms, Chariots of Fire, directed by Shropshire’s Hugh Hudson, plus two Harry Potter films, and two James Bond movies.

Other films making the top 10 include zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead, Ealing comedy Kind Hearts And Coronets, gritty drugs drama Trainspotting, feelgood drama Local Hero, and cult comedy Withnail and I.

Controversially, there is no place in the top 100 for Michael Caine’s cult crime thriller Get Carter.

Monty Python veteran Terry Jones has revealed he would shy away from making Life Of Brian today because of a resurgence in religious belief.

Mr Jones directed and acted in the film which sparked a religious storm from opponents who claimed it made fun of Jesus.

But he told the Radio Times: “I never thought it would be as controversial as it turned out. I took the view it wasn’t blasphemous.

“At the time religion seemed to be on the back burner and it felt like kicking a dead donkey. It’s come back with a vengeance and we’d think twice about making it now.”

Mr Jones was interviewed by the magazine to mark a BBC4 comedy drama, Holy Flying Circus, about the opposition to the film.