Then Barbara Met Alan

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Then Barbara Met Alan
Written byJack Thorne
Genevieve Barr
Directed byBruce Goodison
Amit Sharma
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
Production
Running time67 minutes
Production companiesDragonfly Film and TV
One Shoe Films
Release
Original networkBBC Two
BBC iPlayer
Original release21 March 2022 (2022-03-21)

Then Barbara Met Alan is a 2022 British television drama film about Barbara Lisicki and Alan Holdsworth, the founders of DAN (Disabled People's Direct Action Network), a disability activism group. It is written by Jack Thorne and Genevieve Barr and stars Ruth Madeley and Arthur Hughes.[1][2] It broadcast on BBC Two on 21 March 2022.[3]

Plot[]

After meeting in 1989, two cabaret performers fall in love and help found DAN, the Disabled People's Direct Action Network and lead protests for disabled people's rights which eventually lead to the Disability Discrimination Act of 1995.[4]

Cast[]

Production[]

The project had the working title of Independence Day? How Disabled Rights Were Won.[5][6] During his MacTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh TV Festival, Thorne said this was the first time he had a budget comparable to regular television drama for a disability-centered project.[7][8] Concerning production difficulties in general, this lecture referenced a forthcoming report by Screen Skills written by four writers including Jack Thorne and Genevieve Barr, and it debated the ideas behind a forthcoming campaign of the same name, Underlying Heath Conditions, concerning TV and disabled people.[9]

Historical alterations[]

Some historical events and people depicted were altered for dramatic purposes. These include:

  • the Block Telethon protests in 1990 and 1992 were organised under the name of Campaign to Stop Patronage,[10]
  • DAN was formally created in the spring of 1993 by around 16 disabled people at a weekend meeting in Norwich,[11]
  • some of the later protest events in the film around the compromised[12] Disability Discrimination Act 1995 were organised by a disability campaign called Rights Now! although most DAN members took part in these protests too.[11]

Reception[]

Jack Seale of The Guardian awarded the film five out of five stars, declaring it a 'rollicking fact-based drama'.[13] Sean O'Grady of The Independent also gave it five out of five stars and remarked the film, '(is) as much a moving love story and wryly amusing sitcom as it is an emotionally charged chronicle of a small revolution.' He also praised Madeley and Hughes' performances.[14] Ben Dowell of The Times gave it four out five stars.[15] The Daily Telegraph also gave it four out five stars.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ "Then Barbara Met Alan: First Look At Ruth Madeley In Jack Thorne's Disability Activist Drama". Empire.
  2. ^ "First look images released for BBC's Then Barbara Met Alan". Royal Television Society. December 2, 2021.
  3. ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0015p4q
  4. ^ Richardson, Hollie; Harrison, Phil; Duggins, Alexi (December 29, 2021). "The 25 must-see TV shows of 2022". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  5. ^ Dams, Tim (May 19, 2020). "Jack Thorne, Genevieve Barr Pen BBC Factual Drama on Disabled Rights Campaign". Variety. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  6. ^ "First look pictures from factual drama Then Barbara Met Alan, starring Ruth Madeley and Arthur Hughes". www.bbc.co.uk.
  7. ^ Goldbart, Max (August 24, 2021). "TV has utterly failed disabled people, says 'The Virtues' writer Jack Thorne". Screendaily. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  8. ^ MacTaggart Lecture: Jack Thorne | Edinburgh TV Festival 2021, retrieved 2021-09-02
  9. ^ "Jack Thorne Launches Underlying Health Conditions Pressure Group, Publishes Major Report Into Disabled Representation in TV Industry". IMDB. 3 December 2021.
  10. ^ Barnes, Colin (1991). Disabled people in Britain and discrimination : a case for anti-discrimination legislation : The British Council of Organizations of Disabled People. C. Hurst & Co.
  11. ^ a b Hunt, Judy (2019). No limits : the disabled people's movement : a radical history. Manchester: TBR Imprint.
  12. ^ Gooding, Caroline (1996). Blackstone's Guide to the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. Blackstone with RADAR.
  13. ^ https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/mar/21/then-barbara-met-alan-review-a-rollicking-fact-based-drama-with-a-rock-biographys-swagger
  14. ^ https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/then-barbara-met-alan-bbc-two-b2040666.html
  15. ^ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/then-barbara-met-alan-review-the-underdog-activists-who-fought-for-change-ksv6tn7sl
  16. ^ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/barbara-met-alan-review-joyously-defiant-story-disabled-people/

External links[]

Retrieved from ""