The British Film Industry in the 1970s Capital, Culture and Creativity

Throughout the 1970s the British film industry struggled to produce films which performed well at the box office and appealed to audiences. As a result, the decade has often been considered as one of the low points of British cinema. But was this really the case? Conventional film histories of the decade have emphasised key texts and specific genres, such as the Bond films, the Carry On series or low budget horror. Yet British cinema in this period offered a great deal more to audiences, and careful study of original documents demonstrates the diversity and variety of an industry, and a decade, typically perceived as limited and unimaginative. An examination of important material much of it newly discovered or previously under-used offers an insight into the industry in this decade while key case studies present a detailed picture of the eclectic, diverse and often challenging film culture of the period.

SIAN BARBER is a postdoctoral researcher at Royal Holloway, University of London, UK. She has published a number of articles in edited volumes and international journals.

List of abbreviations
Acknowledgements
Table of Figures
Dedication
Introduction
Film and Cultural History
Understanding the 1970s
Film and Government
Funding Innovation
Movers and Shakers
Institutions and Organisations
The Films
Sunday Bloody Sunday: Authorship, Collaboration and Improvisation
The Go-Between: The Past, the Present and the 1970s
Confessions of a Window Cleaner: Sex, Class and Popular Taste
Stardust: Stardom, Performance and Masculinity
Scum: Institutional Control and Patriarchy
The Tempest: A Brave New World of Creative Endeavour?
Conclusion