Narrated by Sir Derek Jacobi, the documentary combines a new interview with Nanette Newman, contributions from daughters Sarah Standing and Emma Forbes, illustrative clips, and stills from exclusive access to Bryan’s extensive archive of unseen photographs, to assess the lives and careers of a couple who were at the heart of British film for over four decades.
With over 150 screen credits to their names, Nanette Newman and Bryan Forbes were in demand from an early age, and as a couple they shared in each other’s successes and challenges, forming accomplished film and television careers. Bryan was also an acclaimed screenwriter, producer and director. In the late 1950s he formed a partnership with Richard Attenborough and produced a string of ground-breaking films, including The Angry Silence. Within a decade he was heading up EMI Films and was responsible for The Railway Children and The Raging Moon.
With a passion for writing, they have collectively penned over 40 books, with Bryan’s prolific screenwriting adding some of the greatest British films of the 20th Century, including The League of Gentlemen and Whistle Down the Wind.
As a talented photographer, Bryan went on to build-up an extensive archive of photographs, many taken on-set. Thanks to Nanette, the documentary also includes rare photos of Katharine Hepburn, Richard Attenborough, Michael Caine, Elton John, Malcolm McDowell and Peter Sellers, to name a few.
It was thanks to a chance encounter at Marylebone Station in 1953 that Nanette and Bryan first met and fell in love. They were together for the next 60 years, during which time they not only held down outstanding careers, but raised a devoted, closeknit family, their proudest achievement, successfully keeping everyone together despite the hectic ups and downs of the international film business.
Documentary.
Duration 75 minutes