Rita, Sue and Bob Too

Rita, Sue and Bob Too
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAlan Clarke
Screenplay byAndrea Dunbar
Based onRita, Sue and Bob Too and The Arbour
by Andrea Dunbar
Produced byOscar Lewenstein
Sanford Lieberson
Starring
CinematographyIvan Strasburg
Edited bySteve Singleton
Music byMichael Kamen
Production
companies
British Screen
Umbrella Entertainment
Distributed byFilm Four International
Release date
  • 29 May 1987 (1987-05-29)
Running time
89 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget£993,000[1]

Rita, Sue and Bob Too is a 1987 British comedy-drama film directed by Alan Clarke and starring Michelle Holmes, Siobhan Finneran, George Costigan, and Lesley Sharp. Set in Bradford, West Yorkshire, the film is about two teenage schoolgirls who have a sexual affair with and are seduced by a married man.[2] It was written by Andrea Dunbar, who adapted the film from two of her stage plays: Rita Sue and Bob Too (1982) and The Arbour (1980),[3] which were first performed at the Royal Court Theatre in London. The plays were loosely based on Dunbar's experiences growing up in the council housing at Buttershaw.[4]

The strapline of the film was "Thatcher's Britain with her knickers down."[3] It received a divisive reaction at the time of its release, but over time the film has become a cult hit for its depiction of working class life in Britain during the 1980s. In 2017, Rita, Sue and Bob Too was given a digital restoration by the British Film Institute.

  1. ^ "Back to the Future: The Fall and Rise of the British Film Industry in the 1980s - An Information Briefing" (PDF). British Film Institute. 2005. p. 28.
  2. ^ Barnett, David (14 December 2017). "Why the Royal Court cancelling Rita, Sue and Bob Too is a grim joke". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  3. ^ a b Allen, Liam (22 October 2010). "The Arbor: In the footsteps of Rita, Sue and Bob". BBC News. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  4. ^ Hoad, Phil (26 June 2017). "How we made Rita, Sue and Bob Too". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 July 2024.