Mike Leigh’s Cult Classic Nuts in May Comes to Blu ray

One of Mike Leigh’s most memorable television plays is getting a brand new release this August. Nuts in May, first broadcast as part of the BBC’s Play for Today strand in 1976, has become a much loved cult classic over the years. Now, to mark its 50th anniversary, the BFI is bringing the film to Blu ray for the first time on 17 August, with a new 4K restoration.

Starring Alison Steadman and Roger Sloman, the story follows Keith and Candice Marie, a couple who head to a Dorset campsite in their Morris Minor hoping for ten days of peaceful countryside living. Keith is determined to enjoy a carefully planned break filled with vegetarian food, sightseeing and the search for raw milk.

Their idyllic holiday does not quite go according to plan. From a noisy student teacher setting up camp nearby to another couple causing a disturbance, the pair quickly find their idea of a quiet rural escape tested. What follows is a brilliantly awkward and funny clash between different personalities and ideas of how to enjoy the countryside.

The new Blu ray release comes packed with extras, including a new interview with Leigh, an archive commentary and a recording of a 2021 reunion featuring Leigh and members of the original cast. It also includes a selection of archive documentaries and short films exploring British countryside life.

For fans of Mike Leigh and British television history, this release offers a great opportunity to revisit one of his most distinctive and enduring works in a newly restored edition.