MUCH ADO ABOUT DYING
2022
UK/IReland
Dir: simon chambers
ENGLISH
85 mins
3rd may 2024
It begins with a voicemail: ‘I think I may be dying’. Long-retired actor David Newlyn Gale, isn’t quite at death’s door, but his health has deteriorated in recent years. He lives in an unsuitable flat, sustaining himself on cans of soup, keeping himself warm with a small army of electric heaters and battling a mice infestation with toothpaste.
It soon becomes clear that his greatest sources of nourishment are literature and theatre. And he sees in his nephew, who is also gay, a like-minded creative soul. Between the Shakespearean monologues, Much Ado About Dying presents an intimate, occasionally funny and ultimately moving portrait of a solitary life and a quietly critical assessment of the inadequate resources available in the UK for a rapidly ageing population.
Sheffield // showroom // 23rd march Special screening
london // bertha dochouse // 26th march preview
dorset // bridport arts centre // 28th april with q&A
Builth Wells // WYESIDE ARTS // FROM 3RD MAY- q&A 3rd May
Cardigan // Theatr Mwldan // from 3rd may- q&A 4th May
London // arthouse crouch end // from 3rd may- q&A 5th May
LONDON // BERTHA DOCHOUSE // FROM 4TH MAY
skyE // SKYE FILMS // 5TH MAY
GLASGOW // GLASGOW FILM THEATRE // 6TH MAY with q&A
LEWES // DEPOT // 6TH MAY
ABERFELDY // THE BIRKS // 7TH MAY
NEWCASTLE // TYNESIDE CINEMA // 7TH MAY with q&A
INVERNESS // EDEN COURT // FROM 7TH MAY
AYR // AYR FILM SOCIETY // 8TH MAY
NEWBURY // CORN EXCHANGE // 8TH MAY with q&A
MANCHESTER // HOME // 8TH MAY
TOTNES // TOTNES CINEMA // 9TH MAY
ISLE OF EIGG // SCREEN ARGYLL // 9TH MAY
dundee // dca // from 10th may
ISLE OF SEIL // SCREEN ARGYLL // 12TH MAY
London // genesis cinema // 15th may with q&A
Newcastle // Star and shadow cinema // 16th may with q&A
LOCHMADDY // TAIGH CHEARSABHAGH // 17TH MAY
BELFAST // Queens Film Theatre // FROM 19TH MAY with q&A
CROMARTY // CROMARTY COMMUNITY CINEMA // 19TH MAY
PEMBROKESHIRE // Torch Theatre // FROM 19TH MAY
Hereford // the courtyard // from 24th may
PENRITH // LONSDALE ALHAMBRA //26TH MAY
MONTROSE // MONTROSE PLAYHOUSE // 29TH MAY
ST ANDREWS // BYRE THEATRE // 30TH MAY
BONESS // HIPPODROME // FROM 31ST MAY
HEBDEN BRIDGE // PICTURE HOUSE // 2ND JUNE
Reading // biscuit factory // 3rd june with q&A
Falmouth // The Poly// 5th june with q&A
KESWICK // ALHAMBRA // FROM 6TH JUNE
BERKHAMSTED // THE REX // from 12th june
FISHGUARD // THEATR GWAUN // FROM 18TH JUNE
Dumfries // Robert Burns Centre // 21st june
SHREWSBURY // WEM TOWN HALL // FROM 2ND JULY
YORKSHIRE // RURAL ARTS // 26TH SEPTEMBER
screen daily
"In its refreshingly frank look at the end of life, Much Ado About Dying becomes a thought-provoking study of what it means to live."
BACKSEAT MAFIA
"The best kind of documentary. It will make you laugh and cry. It will also make you pause for thought."
VAriety
"Death isn’t an ending in this achingly funny-sad film, just an anxiety passed between loved ones."