JO Brand’s film ‘The More You Ignore Me’ has been showing in selected cinemas across UK and is set to come to Ilkley cinema on Sunday,September 9 for a run of five nights (until the 13th) and there are two screenings on Sunday 9th with a Q&A afterwards with Director Keith English.

Written by, and starring, Jo Brand, the film was directed by Keith who lives and works in Lymington. It has already received excellent reviews - including Chris Evans on his BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show who said ‘I laughed and I cried…Might just be my favourite film of the year so far’.

A poignant and darkly funny coming-of-age story of dysfunctional family life in 1980’s rural England: Gina (Sheridan Smith) whose efforts to be a loving mother and wife are undermined by her declining mental health and her growing obsession with the local weatherman and Alice (Ella Hunt) her daughter, who struggles to relate to her mum. Based on her critically acclaimed novel of the same name, Jo Brand used the insight she gained during her years as a psychiatric health worker. ‘The More You Ignore Me’ is set to the songs of The Smiths and also stars Mark Addy, Sally Phillips, Sheila Hancock, Tom Davis and Ricky Tomlinson.

Keith grew up in Blackgang on the Isle of Wight. He bought his first cine camera from his uncle when he was just eight years old and has, ever since, made little movies.

Later he went to Bournemouth Art College (now the Arts University) to study film and won the college’s ‘Best Film of the Year’ when he graduated. He’s had a long career since, continuing to make ‘little films’ in the guise of TV commercials in London and around the world - winning numerous awards and accolades.

In 2007 he moved to Lymington in the New Forest, Hampshire, with his wife and daughter - which was about the time Jo Brand started to write her novel ‘The More You Ignore Me’. Through a mutual friend, Producer of Genesius Pictures, Debbie Gray, Jo and Keith got together around 2014 and developed her screen adaption of her book into the film they finally shot in 2016.

‘The More You Ignore Me’ is Keith’s first full length feature film and although quite low budget it was blessed with attracting great actors - Sheridan Smith, Mark Addy, Ella Hunt, Sally Phillips in the starring roles. Keith is well known for his emotional, dramatic and funny work in the world of commercials - and that proved to be a great grounding for the rollercoaster ride of story this is!

“It was wonderful to cut my teeth on such a meaty, but heartwarming story,” said Keith. “It’s exactly the kind of film we make so well in this country; distinctive and witty, but with a big heart and a strong message about how mental health issues affect not just the patient, but the family around them. We shot it just outside Blackpool in the Lancashire area but the story was set on the Lancashire/Yorkshire border (Mark Addy is from Yorkshire) - and it shows how a small rural family can deal with these things in a very ‘British’ way. The performances are excellent and the tone is tough but heartwarming. It looks good too - the wonderful photography makes it a film you should see in the cinema!”