91Èȱ¬

Powell and Pressburger were the most fearless of British filmmakers, once described by Martin Scorsese as ‘the most experimental moviemakers of all time’. The pair - Hungarian-Jewish screenwriter Emeric Pressburger who fled the Nazis across Europe to London, and English director Michael Powell - made masterpieces that dazzle to this day.

From their work, filmmaker Carol Morley draws out their response to Britishness, one that was affectionate yet clear-eyed, never blind to our collective faults. She unearths their extraordinary collaboration with each other, as well as other trailblazing creatives – designers, cinematographers and actors - that formed a collective known as The Archers. Between them, they made more than 20 films from the 1930s onwards.

We reappraise some of their greatest classics, including A Matter of Life and Death, The Red Shoes, A Canterbury Tale and I Know Where I’m Going! The programme includes interviews with Tilda Swinton, Ian Christie and Sandy Powell, as well as powerful archive from Lenny Henry and Martin Scorsese.

A major BFI UK-wide celebration of Powell and Pressburger takes place this Autumn, Cinema Unbound: The Creative Worlds of Powell and Pressburger, with screenings and events until the end of the year.

Presented by Carol Morley
Produced by Tim Moorhouse
A Just Radio production for 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4

Picture Credit
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger on set of Oh… Rosalinda!!, photo by Ronnie Pilgrim © 1955 Estate of Michael Powell/BFI National Archive