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Ken Loach

Director

Ken Loach

Born June 17, 1936 in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, England, UK59 films

Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936; Nuneaton) is a retired British film director, screenwriter and producer. His humanist values and socialist political views are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty (Poor Cow, 1967), homelessness (Cathy Come Home, 1966), labour rights (Riff-Raff, 1991; The Navigators, 2001), and revolutionary struggle (Land and Freedom, 1995; The Wind That Shakes the Barley, 2006).

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Kenneth Charles Loach was born on 17 June 1936 in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, the son of Vivien (née Hamlin) and John Loach. He attended King Edward VI Grammar School and at the age of 19 went to serve in the Royal Air Force. He read law at St Peter's College, Oxford and graduated with a third-class degree. As a member of the Oxford University Experimental Theatre Club he directed an open-air production of Bartholomew Fair for the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford, in 1959 (when he also took the role of the shady horse-dealer Dan Jordan Knockem). After Oxford, he began a career in the dramatic arts.

Loach's film Kes (1969) was voted the seventh greatest British film of the 20th century in a poll by the British Film Institute. Two of his films, The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) and I, Daniel Blake (2016), received the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, making him one of only nine filmmakers to win the award twice.

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The best way into Ken Loach's work
I, Daniel Blake posterFirst watchI, Daniel Blake20167.7A 59-year-old carpenter recovering from a heart attack befriends a single mother and her two kids as they navigate the impersonal, Kafkaesque benefits system.View film

Essential films

Ranked by acclaim and reach
The Wind That Shakes the Barley poster7.3The Wind That Shakes the Barley2006Sorry We Missed You poster7.3Sorry We Missed You2019Kes poster7.4Kes1970The Angels' Share poster6.9The Angels' Share2012The Old Oak poster7.2The Old Oak2023Land and Freedom poster7.3Land and Freedom1995My Name Is Joe poster7.3My Name Is Joe1998Sweet Sixteen poster7.0Sweet Sixteen2002

Filmography

59 films as director
  1. 2023The Old OakDirector
  2. 2019Sorry We Missed YouDirector
  3. 2016I, Daniel BlakeDirector
  4. 2016In Conversation With Jeremy CorbynDirector
  5. 2014Jimmy's HallDirector
  6. 2013The Spirit of '45Director
  7. 2012The Angels' ShareDirector
  8. 2011Route IrishDirector
  9. 2009Looking for EricDirector
  10. 2007To Each His Own CinemaDirector
  11. 2007It's a Free World...Director
  12. 2006The Wind That Shakes the BarleyDirector
  13. 2005McLibelDirector
  14. 2005TicketsDirector
  15. 2004Ae Fond Kiss...Director
  16. 2002Sweet SixteenDirector
  17. 2002September 11Director
  18. 2001The NavigatorsDirector
  19. 2000Bread and RosesDirector
  20. 1998My Name Is JoeDirector
  21. 1998Another City: A Week in the Life of Bath's Football ClubDirector
  22. 1996The Flickering FlameDirector
  23. 1996Carla's SongDirector
  24. 1995Land and FreedomDirector
  25. 1995A Contemporary Case for Common OwnershipDirector
  26. 1994Ladybird LadybirdDirector
  27. 1993Raining StonesDirector
  28. 1991Riff-RaffDirector
  29. 1991The Arthur LegendDirector
  30. 1990Hidden AgendaDirector
  31. 1989The View from the WoodpileDirector
  32. 1989Time to GoDirector
  33. 1986FatherlandDirector
  34. 1985Which Side Are You On?Director
  35. 1985End of the Battle... Not the End of the WarDirector
  36. 1983The Red and the BlueDirector
  37. 1981Looks and SmilesDirector
  38. 1981A Question of LeadershipDirector
  39. 1980AuditionsDirector
  40. 1980The GamekeeperDirector
  41. 1979Black JackDirector
  42. 1977The Price of Coal, Part 2: Back to RealityDirector
  43. 1977The Price of Coal, Part 1: Meet the PeopleDirector
  44. 1971Talk About WorkDirector
  45. 1971Family LifeDirector
  46. 1971The Rank and FileDirector
  47. 1971The Save the Children Fund FilmDirector
  48. 1970KesDirector
  49. 1969The Big FlameDirector
  50. 1968The Golden VisionDirector
  51. 1967Poor CowDirector
  52. 1967In Two MindsDirector
  53. 1966Cathy Come HomeDirector
  54. 1965The Coming Out PartyDirector
  55. 1965The End of Arthur's MarriageDirector
  56. 1965Up the JunctionDirector
  57. 1965Three Clear SundaysDirector
  58. 1965Wear a Very Big HatDirector
  59. 1965A Tap on the ShoulderDirector