The Lady in the Van (2015)

A man forms an unexpected bond with a transient woman living in her van that's parked in his driveway.

Director:

Nicholas Hytner

Writer:

Alan Bennett

Stars:

Maggie Smith, Alex Jennings, Jim Broadbent

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Maggie Smith	...	Miss Shepherd
Jim Broadbent	...	Underwood
Clare Hammond	...	Young Margaret Fairchild
George Fenton	...	Conductor
BBC Concert Orchestra	...	The British Symphony Orchestra
Alex Jennings	...	Alan Bennett
Jamie Parker	...	Estate Agent
Deborah Findlay	...	Pauline
Roger Allam	...	Rufus
Richard Griffiths	...	Sam Perry
Pandora Colin	...	Fiona Perry
Nicholas Burns	...	Giles Perry
Dominic Cooper	...	Actor
Giles Cooper	...	Passer by
Tom Klenerman	...	Tom Perry

Storyline

The Lady in the Van tells the true story of Alan Bennett's strained friendship with Miss Mary Shepherd, an eccentric homeless woman whom Bennett befriended in the 1970s before allowing her temporarily to park her Bedford van in the driveway of his Camden home. She stayed there for 15 years. As the story develops Bennett learns that Miss Shepherd is really Margaret Fairchild (died 1989), a former gifted pupil of the pianist Alfred Cortot. She had played Chopin in a promenade concert, tried to become a nun, was committed to an institution by her brother, escaped, had an accident when her van was hit by a motorcyclist for which she believed herself to blame, and thereafter lived in fear of arrest.

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Plot Keywords:

motorcycle accident | guilty conscience | corrupt police | mental institution | nun | 

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Taglines:

A mostly true story

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG - 13 for a brief unsettling image

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 April 2016 (Germany)

Also Known As:

A Senhora da Furgoneta

Filming Locations:

Gloucester Crescent, Camden Town, London, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$175,280 (USA) (22 January 2016)

Gross:

$9,978,025 (USA) (20 May 2016)

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Films, TriStar Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

During one montage showing the passage of several years, Miss Shepherd decorates her van with Union Jacks and pictures of Queen Elizabeth II. This means it is 1977 (the year of the Queen's silver jubilee).

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Goofs

There are a couple of historical mistakes which the filmmakers perhaps missed, and which show the hazard of filming in today's environment. In one of the early street scenes, circa 1974, Miss Shepherd is seen walking away from a crossroads. The traffic signals shown there are a modern design, not introduced until 1997. In another scene where she is seen with Alan Bennett near the gates of the convent, the block of flats in the background have modern double-glazing. In the 1970s, this would either have been single-glazed with wood frames or light aluminium.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Alan Bennett: [typing] The smell is sweet, with urine only a minor component, the prevalent odor suggesting the inside of someone's ear. Dank clothes are there, too, wet wool and onions, which she eats raw. Plus, what for me has always been the essence of poverty, damp newspaper. Miss Shepherd's multi-flavored aroma is masked by a liberal application of various talcum powders, with Yardley's Lavender always a favorite. And currently it is this genteel fragrance that dominates the second subject, ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

During the first part of the credits, a young Margaret can be seen playing the piano at her concert in King's Hall.

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Connections

Featured in The Lady in the Van: Playing the Lady - Maggie Smith as Miss Shepherd (2016)

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Soundtracks

Pretty Please
Written by Leon and Levi Triplett
Performed by The Triplett Twins

User Reviews

Maggie Smith never disappoints

Maggie Smith never disappoints. She is such an amazing actress and continues to be in "The Lady in the Van." Such an interesting true story of a very odd woman, this film is very endearing. The chemistry between Maggie Smith and Alex Jennings is very enjoyable to watch. Their relationship had a sort of codependency between them that was really fueled by a real caring for each other for different reasons. Director Nicholas Hytner did a great job of portraying the comedy found in this story. And that is due to the great acting of Maggie Smith, whom I cannot say enough about. Her recent Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture- Comedy was well deserved and although she didn't take home the trophy, her performance is still one to be heavily applauded.