Following the showing of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, Kirsty Wark hosts a post-film discussion. This examines the trends in British film-making at the time of the film's release, looking at the relationship between cinema and society, as well as highlighting the art and craft behind each film-maker's vision.

Kirsty's guests, including the writer and actors from Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, are Alan Sillitoe (writer), Freddie Francis (cinematographer), Shirley Anne Field (actress, Doreen), Johnny Dankworth (composer) and Ronnie Taylor (camera operator).

The film, with its graphic portrayal of sex, violence and urban reality, was the inspiration for a number of features that would document the lives of ordinary Britons in a way that had never been seen before. Set in a working-class estate in Nottingham, the film documents the central character's disdain for authority. Arthur Seaton, played by Albert Finney, is a handsome but nonconformist factory worker, stuck in a dead end job who is alienated from his parents and fellow workers.

Contributor Briefing

Alan Sillitoe (Writer)
Author of the original novel and scriptwriter of the screenplay for the film. A bestselling novelist for the past 40 years, Alan Sillitoe has lately produced his long-awaited sequel to that first novel, Birthday (Flamingo, 2002). His autobiography, A Life Without Armour, was published in 1995.

Freddie Francis (Cinematographer)
After serving as cinematographer on Saturday Night and Sunday Morning he went on to work with Martin Scorsese and David Lynch. He won Oscars for Sons and Lovers (1960, Jack Cardiff) and Glory (1989, Edward Zwick). He is the first British cameraman to have won the award for colour and black and white cinematography. He has also directed many films in his own right.

Shirley Anne Field (Actress: Doreen)
She played Doreen, the girlfriend of Saturday Night and Sunday Morning anti-hero Arthur Seaton, played by Albert Finney. She was one of the most recognisable and respected actresses of the 1960s, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier in The Entertainer (1960, also from Woodfall and directed by Tony Richardson), and in films such as Michael Powell’s Peeping Tom (1960) and Lewis Gilbert’s Alfie (1966). More recently, she has appeared in modern classics such as Stephen Frears’s My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) and Peter Chelsom’s Hear My Song (1991). A Time for Love, her autobiography, was published in 1991.

Johnny Dankworth (Composer)
He is one of the most significant postwar jazz musicians and composers. He has worked as musical director with such giants as Nat ‘King’ Cole and Oscar Peterson, and ‘divas’ such as Ella Fitzgerald, Sophie Tucker and Cleo Laine (to whom he is married).

Ronnie Taylor (Camera Operator)
He was the camera operator on Saturday Night and Sunday Morning and went on to become a major cinematographer, working on features such as Cry Freedom (1987) and Gandhi (1982), both directed by Sir Richard Attenborough, for which he received a joint Oscar.

Content last updated: 30/11/2002

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