
Mike Leigh
The film director talks to Matthew Sweet as his historical epic Peterloo opens in cinemas
Arts & Ideas · BBC Radio 4
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (open.live.bbc.co.uk) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
The film director talks to Matthew Sweet about his career and his approach to dramatising history. His new film Peterloo depicts the 1819 massacre at a rally in Manchester where a crowd of 60,000–80,000 were demanding the reform of parliamentary representation. It follows his film about the painter Mr Turner and the 2004 film Vera Drake which depicted the 1950s - a period when abortions were illegal in England.
Peterloo is in UK cinemas from 2 November Jacqueline Riding's Peterloo - The Story of the Manchester Massacre is available now
Producer: Debbie Kilbride