Mike Leigh (Another Year, Mr Turner) directs this much-anticipated drama based on events surrounding the infamous 1819 Peterloo Massacre, where British forces fired on a peaceful pro-democracy rally at St Peter’s Field in Manchester.
The notorious incident saw British government forces charge into a crowd of 60,000 that had demanded political reform. The forces killed an estimated 18 protesters and injured hundreds, sparking outcry but also further government crackdowns. It proved to be a defining moment in radical British history, which also played a significant role in the founding of the UK’s left-wing broadsheet newspaper The Guardian.
Mike Leigh / UK 2018 / 2h35m / 12A – Contains moderate violence, language. / Cast: Rory Kinnear, Maxine Peake, Pearce Quigley, Rachel Finnegan, David Moorst, Tom Meredith, Simona Bitmate.