Bristol Theatre Reviews

An Audience with Christopher Eccleston Bristol Film Festival

Christopher Eccleston has played some iconic roles over the years. There’s no forgetting his performance in movies such as Shallow Grave, DCI Billborough in gritty TV series Cracker, dramas such as The Second Coming and then of course he became an icon as The Doctor in the rebooted Doctor Who.

But this evening was dedicated to looking back at his background and inspirations – which were very much found in his working class roots on a Salford council estate.

Ably interviewed by movie critic and journalist Anna Smith, Eccleston talked about his family background and his entry into acting which was plagued by anxiety, anorexia and imposter syndrome.

He discussed the social backdrop of Salford and the historical context of working class life at the time.

Breaking out of societal expectations and announcing he was going to be an actor – citing movies such as Kez as inspiration – is what is what brought him to Albert Finney – who was also from Salford.

When announcing he was going to become an actor, he met with comments asking if he was going to be the ‘next Albert Finney’ which in turn introduced him to the movie he had chosen for the evening’s screening.

Saturday Night Sunday Morning, is a 1960’s naturalistic portrayal of working class life. Based on the 1958 novel of the same name by Alan Sillitoe, the film led the way in British kitchen sink dramas.

Beautifully shot in black and white and directed by Karel Reisz, it tells the story of Arthur Seaton, a machinist at the Raleigh bicycle factory. He spends his weekends drinking hard and having fun. He has two women on the go at the same time, one who is married and he makes pregnant as well as a second one.

There is a strong sense of relationships, family, community loyalty and what it means to break ranks from that – all set against the hammering noise of the factory, local pubs and social clubs and the intense proximity of back-to-back houses where everyone knows everybody’s business.

Despite the film being some sixty years old, the tinges of working men’s boozers, working class culture and the lack of independence women had at the time feels only touching distance away for those aged 40 something upwards.

Following the screening was further discussion about the portrayal of working class culture, women’s rights and the move from predominantly white working class neighbourhoods to the Black Lives Matter movement.

The floor was thrown open for Eccleston to take questions and comments regarding the movie, which the audience embraced.

It was inspiring to see working class culture portrayed so positively, especially regarding council estate life.

I brought along a young Doctor Who fan, who loved the movie. He was totally inspired by the way the film was shot and edited, discussing camera angles he liked and the acting performance of Albert Finney.

We are a family living on a council estate in Bristol, one for which the back to back houses were cleared to make way for a motorway and blocks of midrise flats, scattering that community through new social housing developments around the corners of the city. Having that representation on screen and also embodied by Christopher Eccleston live on stage was an important moment. He made acting and film making for working class kids feel possible. He was inspiring, authentic, entertaining and absolutely fantastic.

For more information, visit https://www.bristolfilmfestival.com/

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