Set in 1930s Salford during the Great Depression, Love on the Dole follows two young siblings, Harry and Sally Hardcastle, Sally played by Deborah Kerr, who fall prey to poverty and mass unemployment, and must make terrible sacrifices in order to survive. Initially banned when it was made in 1941, it has never been available on Blu-ray. On 18 January 2016 the BFI will release it for the first time, presented in a Dual Format Edition (Blu-ray and DVD discs), accompanied by three short films from the BFI National Archive and a booklet.
Although its stark portrayal of social deprivation led the British Board of Film Censors to ban the film as a ‘very sordid story in very sordid surroundings’, Love on the Dole nonetheless retains an optimistic spirit, reinforcing the ideal that Britain’s working classes could face any hardship. Through its impassioned performances, it shows faith in the values of liberal democracy which Britain upheld throughout the war, and looks forward to a better future.
Love on the Dole will be screened at BFI Southbank on 17 and 21 January (with an introduction by film historian Geoff Brown on Sunday 17), as part of the season Blitz Flicks running throughout the month. Each weekend, audiences can experience a matinee programme, 1940s-style, with all features playing with a supporting programme of propaganda shorts, just as they would have been shown at the time.
