Ken Loach | |
|---|---|
 Loach in 2014 | |
| Born | Kenneth Charles Loach (1936-06-17)17 June 1936 (age 88) Nuneaton,Warwickshire, England |
| Education | King Edward VI Grammar School,Warwickshire |
| Alma mater | St Peter's College, Oxford (BA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1962–present |
| Political party | Labour (1962–1994, 2015–2021)[1][2] Left Unity (2012–2015) Respect (2004–2012) Independent (1994–2012, 2021–present) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 5, includingJim |
| Relatives | Elliot Levey (son-in-law) |
Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is an English filmmaker. His socially critical directing style andsocialist views are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty (Poor Cow, 1967), homelessness (Cathy Come Home, 1966), andlabour rights (Riff-Raff, 1991, andThe Navigators, 2001).
Loach's filmKes (1969) was voted theseventh greatest British film of the 20th century in a poll by theBritish Film Institute. Two of his films,The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) andI, Daniel Blake (2016), received thePalme d'Or at theCannes Film Festival, making him one of only ten filmmakers to win the award twice.[3] He also holds the record for the most films screened in the main competition at Cannes with 15.[4]
Kenneth Charles Loach was born inNuneaton, Warwickshire on 17 June 1936, the son of Vivien (née Hamlin) and John Loach.[5] He attendedKing Edward VI Grammar School and joined theRoyal Air Force at the age of 19.[6] He later read law atSt Peter's College, Oxford,[7] graduating with athird-class degree.[6] As a member of theExperimental Theatre Club, he directed a 1959 open-air production ofBartholomew Fair for theShakespeare Memorial Theatre, in which he also starred as Dan Jordan Knockem.[8]
Loach first worked as an actor in regional theatre companies and then as a director forBBC Television.[9] His 10 contributions to the BBC'sWednesday Play anthology series include the docudramasUp the Junction (1965),Cathy Come Home (1966) andIn Two Minds (1967). They portray working-class people in conflict with the authorities above them. Three of his early plays are believed to belost.[10] His 1965 playThree Clear Sundays dealt with capital punishment, and was broadcast at a time when the debate was at a height in the United Kingdom.[11]Up the Junction, adapted byNell Dunn from her book with the assistance of Loach, deals with an illegal abortion while the leading characters inCathy Come Home, byJeremy Sandford, are affected by homelessness, unemployment, and the workings of Social Services.In Two Minds, written byDavid Mercer, concerns a youngschizophrenic woman's experiences of the mental health system.Tony Garnett began to work as his producer in this period, a professional connection which would last until the end of the 1970s.[12]
During this period, Loach also directed the absurdist comedyThe End of Arthur's Marriage, about which he later said that he was "the wrong man for the job".[13] Coinciding with his work forThe Wednesday Play, Loach began to direct feature films for the cinema, withPoor Cow (1967) andKes (1969).[14] The latter recounts the story of a troubled boy and hiskestrel, and is based on the novelA Kestrel for a Knave byBarry Hines. The film was well received, although the use ofYorkshire dialect throughout the film restricted its distribution, with some American executives atUnited Artists saying that they would have found a film in Hungarian easier to understand.[15] TheBritish Film Institute named it No 7 in its list of best British films of the twentieth century, published in 1999.[16][17]
During the 1970s and 1980s, Loach's films were less successful, often suffering from poor distribution, lack of interest and political censorship. His documentaryThe Save the Children Fund Film (1971) was commissioned bythe charity, who subsequently disliked it so much they attempted to have the negative destroyed. It was only screened publicly for the first time on 1 September 2011, at the BFI Southbank.[18] During the 1980s Loach concentrated on television documentaries rather than fiction, and many of these films are now difficult to access as the television companies have not released them on video or DVD. At the end of the 1980s, he directed some television advertisements forTennent's Lager to earn money.[19]
Days of Hope (1975) is a four-part drama for the BBC directed by Loach from scripts by dramatistJim Allen. The first episode of the series caused considerable controversy in the British media owing to its critical depiction of the military inWorld War I,[20] and particularly over a scene where conscientious objectors were tied up to stakes outside trenches in view of enemy fire after refusing to obey orders.[10][21] An ex-serviceman subsequently contactedThe Times newspaper with an illustration from the time of a similar scene.[21]
Loach's documentaryA Question of Leadership (1981) interviewed members of theIron and Steel Trades Confederation (the main trade union for Britain's steel industry) about their 14-week strike in 1980, and recorded much criticism of the union's leadership for conceding over the issues in the strike. Subsequently, Loach made a four-part series namedQuestions of Leadership which subjected the leadership of other trade unions to similar scrutiny from their members, but this has never been broadcast.Frank Chapple, leader of theElectrical, Electronic, Telecommunications and Plumbing Union, walked out of the interview and made a complaint to theIndependent Broadcasting Authority. A separate complaint was made byTerry Duffy of theAmalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union. The series was due to be broadcast during theTrade Union Congress conference in 1983, butChannel 4 decided against broadcasting the series following the complaints.[22]Anthony Hayward claimed in 2004 that the media tycoonRobert Maxwell had put pressure onCentral Television's board (Central was the successor to the original production companyAssociated Television),[23] of which he had become a director, to withdrawQuestions of Leadership at the time he was buying theDaily Mirror newspaper and needed the co-operation of union leaders, especially Chapple.[24][page needed]
Which Side Are You On? (1985), about the songs and poems of theUK miners' strike, was originally due to be broadcast onThe South Bank Show, but was rejected on the grounds that it was too politically unbalanced for an arts show. The documentary was eventually transmitted on Channel 4, but only after it won a prize at an Italian film festival.[25] Three weeks after the end of the strike, the filmEnd of the Battle ... Not the End of the War? was broadcast by Channel 4 in itsDiverse Strands series. This film argued that theConservative Party had planned the destruction of theNational Union of Mineworkers' political power from the late 1970s.[26]
In 1989, Loach directed a short documentaryTime to go that called for the British Army to be withdrawn from Northern Ireland, which was broadcast in the BBC'sSplit Screen series.[27]
From the late 1980s, Loach directed theatrical feature films more regularly, a series of films such asHidden Agenda (1990), dealing with the political troubles in Northern Ireland,Land and Freedom (1995), examining theRepublican resistance in theSpanish Civil War, andCarla's Song (1996), which was set partially inNicaragua. He directed thecourtroom drama reconstructions in the docu-filmMcLibel, concerningMcDonald's Restaurants v Morris & Steel, the longest libel trial in English history. Interspersed with political films were more intimate works such asRaining Stones (1993), a working-class drama concerning an unemployed man's efforts to buy acommunion dress for his young daughter.
On 28 May 2006, Loach won thePalme d'Or at the2006 Cannes Film Festival for his filmThe Wind That Shakes the Barley,[28] a political-historical drama about theIrish War of Independence and the subsequentIrish Civil War during the 1920s. LikeHidden Agenda before it,The Wind That Shakes the Barley was criticised byRuth Dudley Edwards for allegedly being too sympathetic to theIrish Republican Army andProvisional Irish Republican Army, though it would transpire that Edwards had not seen the film.[10] This film was followed byIt's a Free World... (2007), a story of one woman's attempt to establish an illegal placement service for migrant workers in London.
Throughout the 2000s, Loach interspersed wider political dramas such asBread and Roses (2000), which focused on theLos Angeles janitors strike, andRoute Irish (2010), set during theIraq occupation, with smaller examinations of personal relationships.Ae Fond Kiss... (a.k.a.Just a Kiss, 2004) explored an inter-racial love affair,Sweet Sixteen (2002) concerns a teenager's relationship with his mother andMy Name Is Joe (1998) an alcoholic's struggle to stay sober. His most commercial later film isLooking for Eric (2009), featuring a depressed postman's conversations with the ex-Manchester United footballerEric Cantona appearing as himself. The film won theMagritte Award for Best Co-Production. Although successful in Manchester, the film was a flop in many other cities, especially cities with rival football teams to Manchester United.[10]
The Angels' Share (2012) is centered on a young Scottish troublemaker who is given a final opportunity to stay out of jail. NewcomerPaul Brannigan, then 24, from Glasgow, played the lead role.[29] The film competed for the Palme d'Or at the2012 Cannes Film Festival[30] where Loach won theJury Prize.[31]Jimmy's Hall (2014) was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or in the main competition section at the2014 Cannes Film Festival.[32] Loach announced his retirement from film-making in 2014 but soon after restarted his career following the election of a Conservative government in theUK general election of 2015.[33]
Loach won his second Palme d'Or forI, Daniel Blake (2016).[34] In February 2017, the film was awarded aBAFTA as "Outstanding British Film".[35]
His 2019 dramaSorry We Missed You garnered good reviews.[36][37]
In May 2010, Loach referred in an interview to the three films that have influenced him most:Vittorio De Sica'sBicycle Thieves (1948),Miloš Forman'sLoves of a Blonde (1965) andGillo Pontecorvo'sThe Battle of Algiers (1966). De Sica's film had a particularly profound effect. He noted: "It made me realise that cinema could be about ordinary people and their dilemmas. It wasn't a film about stars, or riches or absurd adventures".[38]
Throughout his career, some of Loach's films have been shelved for political reasons. In a 2011 interview withThe Guardian newspaper he said:
It makes you angry, not on your own behalf, but on behalf of the people whose voices weren't allowed to be heard. When you had trade unions, ordinary people, rank and file, never been on television, never been interviewed, and they're not allowed to be heard, that's scandalous.[39]
Loach argues that working people's struggles are inherently dramatic:
They live life very vividly, and the stakes are very high if you don't have a lot of money to cushion your life. Also, because they're the front line of what we came to call the class war. Either through being workers without work, or through being exploited where they were working. And I guess for a political reason, because we felt, and I still think, that if there is to be change, it will come from below. It won't come from people who have a lot to lose, it will come from people who will have everything to gain.[39]
A thematic consistency throughout his films, whether they examine broad political situations or smaller intimate dramas, is his focus on personal relationships.[original research?] The sweeping political dramas (Land and Freedom,Bread and Roses,The Wind that Shakes the Barley) examine wider political forces in the context of relationships between family members (Bread and Roses,The Wind that Shakes the Barley,Carla's Song), comrades in struggle (Land and Freedom) or close friends (Route Irish). In a 2011 interview for theFinancial Times, Loach explains how "The politics are embedded into the characters and the narrative, which is a more sophisticated way of doing it".[40]
Many of Loach's films include a large amount of traditionaldialect, such as theYorkshire dialect inKes and inThe Price of Coal,Cockney inUp the Junction andPoor Cow,Scouse inThe Big Flame,Lancashire dialect inRaining Stones,Glaswegian inMy Name Is Joe and the dialect ofGreenock inSweet Sixteen. Many of these films have been subtitled when shown in other English-speaking countries.[41] When asked about this in an interview with Cineaste, Loach replied:
If you ask people to speak differently, you lose more than the voice. Everything about them changes. If I asked you not to speak with an American accent, your whole personality would change. That's how you are. My hunch is that it's better to use subtitles than not, even if that limits the films to an art-house circuit.[41]
Loach was amongst the first British directors to useswearing in his films.Mary Whitehouse complained about swearing inCathy Come Home andUp the Junction,[42] whileThe Big Flame (1969) for the BBC was an early instance of the wordshit, and the certificate toKes caused some debate owing to the profanity,[43] but these films have relatively few swear words compared to his later work. In particular, the filmSweet Sixteen was awarded an18 certificate on the basis of the very large amount of swearing, despite the lack of serious violence or sexual content, which led Loach to encourage under-18s to break the law to see the film.[44]
In a 2014 article, feminist writerJulie Bindel criticised Loach's recent films for a lack of female characters who were not simply love interests for the male characters, although she praised his early filmsCathy Come Home andKes.[45] She also wrote, "Loach appears not to know gay people exist".[45] In the article, Bindel stated that she "hadn’t seen a Ken Loach film in years", and only made reference to the content of one of Loach's films in support of her argument, the then-recently releasedJimmy's Hall.[45]
Loach first joined theLabour Party from the early 1960s. In the 1980s, he was in the Labour Party because of the presence of "a radical element that was critical of the leadership", but Loach had left the Labour Party by the early to mid-1990s, after being a member for 30 years.[46][47] During the 1960s and 1970s, he was associated with (or a member of) the Socialist Labour League (later theWorkers Revolutionary Party),[48][47] the International Socialists (later theSocialist Workers Party or SWP)[47] and theInternational Marxist Group.[47]
He was involved inRespect – The Unity Coalition from its beginnings in January 2004,[49] and stood for election to theEuropean Parliament on the Respect list in 2004.[50] Loach was elected to the national council of Respect the following November.[46] When Respect split in 2007, Loach identified withRespect Renewal, the faction identified withGeorge Galloway.[51] Later, his connection with Respect ended.[52]
Together withJohn Pilger andJemima Khan, Loach was among the six people in court who offeredsurety forJulian Assange when he was arrested in London on 7 December 2010.[53] The money was forfeited when Assange skipped bail to seek asylum in theEmbassy of Ecuador, London.[54]
Loach supported theTrade Unionist and Socialist Coalition in the2012 London Assembly election.[55] With the support of the activistKate Hudson and academicGilbert Achcar, Loach launched a campaign in March 2013 for a new left-wing party[56] which was founded asLeft Unity on 30 November. Left Unity candidates gained an average of 3.2% in the2014 local elections.[57] Loach gave a press conference during the launch of Left Unity's manifesto for the2015 general election.[58]
In a letter sent toThe Guardian in 2009, Loach advocated support for thePalestine Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) along with his regular colleaguesPaul Laverty (writer) andRebecca O'Brien (producer).[59]
In 2007, Loach was one of more than 100 artists and writers who signed an open letter calling on theSan Francisco International LGBT Film Festival "to honour calls for aninternational boycott of Israeli political and cultural institutions, by discontinuing Israeli consulate sponsorship of the LGBT film festival and not co-sponsoring events with the Israeli consulate".[60] Loach also joined "54 international figures in the literary and cultural fields" in signing a letter that stated, in part, "celebrating 'Israel at 60' is tantamount to dancing on Palestinian graves to the haunting tune of lingering dispossession and multi-faceted injustice". The letter was published in theInternational Herald Tribune on 8 May 2008.[61]
Responding to a report, which Loach described as "ared herring", on the growth of antisemitism since the beginning of theGaza War of 2008–2009, he said: "If there has been a rise I am not surprised. In fact, it is perfectly understandable because Israel feeds feelings of anti-Semitism". He added that "no-one can condone violence".[62][63] Speaking at the launch of theRussell Tribunal on Palestine on 4 March 2009, he said that "nothing has been a greater instigator of antisemitism than the self-proclaimed Jewish state itself".[64]
In May 2009, organisers of theEdinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) returned a £300 grant from the Israeli Embassy to fund Israeli filmmakerTali Shalom Ezer's travel to Edinburgh after speaking with Loach. He was supporting a boycott of the festival called for by the PACBI campaign. In response, former Channel 4 chief executiveJeremy Isaacs described Loach's intervention as an act of censorship, saying: "They must not allow someone who has no real position, no rock to stand on, to interfere with their programming". Later, a spokesman for the EIFF said that although it had returned £300 to the Israeli Embassy, the festival itself would fund Shalom-Ezer's travel from its own budget.[65][66][67] Her filmSurrogate (2008) is a comedy set in a sex-therapy clinic which is unconcerned with war or politics.[65] In an open letter to Shalom-Ezer, Loach wrote: "From the beginning, Israel and its supporters have attacked their critics as anti-semites or racists. It is a tactic to undermine rational debate. To be crystal clear: as a film maker you will receive a warm welcome in Edinburgh. You are not censored or rejected. The opposition was to the Festival's taking money from the Israeli state".[68] To his critics, he added later: "The boycott, as anyone who takes the trouble to investigate knows, is aimed at the Israeli state". Loach said he had a "respectful and reasoned" conversation with event organisers, saying they should not be accepting funds from Israel.[69]
In June 2009, Loach, Laverty and O'Brien withdrew their filmLooking For Eric from theMelbourne International Film Festival, where the Israeli Embassy is a sponsor, after the festival declined to withdraw that sponsorship.[70] The festival's chief executive, Richard Moore, compared Loach's tactics to blackmail, stating that "we will not participate in a boycott against the State of Israel, just as we would not contemplate boycotting films from China or other nations involved in difficult long-standing historical disputes". Australian politicianMichael Danby also criticised Loach's tactics, stating that "Israelis and Australians have always had a lot in common, including contempt for the irritating British penchant for claiming cultural superiority. Melbourne is a very different place to Londonistan".[71] An article inThe Scotsman byAlex Massie noted that Loach had not called for the same boycott of theCannes Film Festival, where his film was in competition with some Israeli films.[72]
Loach, Laverty and O'Brien subsequently wrote:
We feel duty bound to take advice from those living at the sharp end inside the occupied territories. We would also encourage other filmmakers and actors invited to festivals to check for Israeli state backing before attending, and if so, to respect the boycott. Israeli filmmakers are not the target. State involvement is. In the grand scale of things it is a tiny contribution to a growing movement, but the example of South Africa should give us heart.[73]
Loach had rejoined theLabour Party by 2017,[74] and was a member until his expulsion in the summer of 2021.[75] In August 2015, he endorsedJeremy Corbyn's Labour leadership campaign.[76] In September 2016, Loach's one-hour documentaryIn Conversation with Jeremy Corbyn was released during thesecond leadership election.[77][78]
In May 2017, Loach directed anelection broadcast featuring a profile ofJeremy Corbyn[79] for the Labour Party'sgeneral election campaign.[80] In all, he has made three broadcasts for the party.[81]
In interviews in September and October 2019, Loach said MPs around Corbyn had not acted as a team, and that most would prefer a rightwing leader. He said the Labour leadership had "compromised too much with the Labour right". He accused the right of the party, includingTom Watson, of aiming to destroy the socialist programme put forward by Corbyn. He suggested that sitting Labour MP's and councillors should reapply for their jobs before each election so that they could be judged on their record. He also said that Labour people should make a case for socialism including "[en]hancing trade union rights,planning the economy, investing in the regions, kicking out theprivatised elements of theNHS". He considered issues such as health, schools, poverty, inequality and climate change as more important thanBrexit.[82][83]
In November 2019, Loach endorsed the Labour Party in the2019 general election.[84] In December 2019, along with 42 other leading cultural figures, he signed a letter endorsing the Labour Party under Corbyn's leadership in the 2019 general election. The letter stated that "Labour's election manifesto under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership offers a transformative plan that prioritises the needs of people and the planet over private profit and the vested interests of a few."[85][86]
In August 2021, Loach was expelled from the Labour Party because of his membership with the organisationLabour Against the Witchhunt,[87][88] with the party saying he was removed for failing to "disown" Labour members who had been expelled.[75][89][90][91][92][93] In an interview withJacobin the same month, Loach stated that he was not a member of any of the organisations which had recently been proscribed by the party, but that he "support(ed) many of the people who have been expelled, because they are good friends and comrades". He also argued that his expulsion was anex post facto action as the evidence the party cited in their letter informing him of their decision dated from before the organisations he was accused of being a member of had been banned by the party.[94] Former shadow chancellorJohn McDonnell said, "To expel such a fine socialist who has done so much to further the cause of socialism is a disgrace".[95] His expulsion was also opposed by theSocialist Campaign Group but supported by theJewish Labour Movement.[93]
At theLabour Party Conference in September 2017, Loach said he had been going to Labour Party, trade union and left-wing meetings for over 50 years and had never heard antisemitic or racist remarks, although such views certainly existed in society.[96] When asked about allegations of antisemitic abuse made by Labour MPRuth Smeeth, he suggested that they were raised to destabilise Corbyn's leadership, due to his support for Palestinian rights.[96][97] He was also asked about a conference fringe event at whichMiko Peled suggested people should be allowed to question whetherthe Holocaust had happened. Loach responded: "I think history is for all of us to discuss. The founding of the state of Israel, for example, based on ethnic cleansing, is there for us all to discuss, so don't try and subvert that by false stories of antisemitism".[98] Following the publication of articles byJonathan Freedland andHoward Jacobson which were critical of him, he said it was not acceptable to question or challenge the reality of the Holocaust, which was as real a historical event as theSecond World War itself.[99][100]The Jerusalem Post maintained Loach had not been quoted out of context, and that his words had been in response to the question about whether the Holocaust was real.[101]
Loach was an official sponsor of the groupLabour Against the Witchhunt, launched in 2017 to campaign against what it sees to be politically motivated allegations of antisemitism in the Labour Party.[92][93]
In April 2018, Loach was reported to have said, at a screening ofI, Daniel Blake organised byKingswood Labour Party, that those Labour MPs who had attended a rally in Parliament Square the previous month opposing allegedantisemitism in the Labour Party should be deselected or, as he reputedly expressed it, "kicked out" because of their lack of support for the current manifesto.[81][102] Asked for clarification, Loach said the quoted remarks "do not reflect my position" and that "reselecting an MP should not be based on individual incidents but reflect the MP's principles, actions and behaviour over a long period."[102]
In July 2019, the BBC'sPanorama aired an episode entitled"Is Labour Anti-Semitic?".[103] Loach commented, saying "it raised the horror of racism against Jews in the most atrocious propagandistic way, with crude journalism … and it bought the propaganda from people who were intent on destroying Corbyn".[83]
In 2016, Loach, a social campaigner for most of his career, said the criteria forclaiming benefits in the UK were "aKafka-esque,Catch-22 situation designed to frustrate and humiliate the claimant to such an extent that they drop out of the system and stop pursuing their right to ask for support if necessary".[104]
Loach married Lesley Ashton in 1962. They reside inBath, Somerset, and have two sons and two daughters together.[105] They had another son, who died at the age of five on 2 May 1971 in a car accident on theM1 motorway.[106][107] Their sonJim (born 1969) became a filmmaker, while their daughter Emma is married to actorElliot Levey.[108]
Loach is a patron of theBritish Humanist Association and asecularist, saying, "In particular, the indoctrination of children in separate faith schools is pernicious and divisive. I strongly support the British Humanist Association."[109]
Loach turned down anOBE in 1977. In a March 2001Radio Times interview, he said, "It's all the things I think are despicable: patronage, deferring to the monarchy and the name of theBritish Empire, which is a monument of exploitation and conquest. I turned down the OBE because it's not a club you want to join when you look at the villains who've got it."[110]
Loach has been awardedhonorary doctorates by theUniversity of Bath, theUniversity of Birmingham,Staffordshire University, andKeele University.[111] TheUniversity of Oxford awarded him an honoraryDoctor of Civil Law degree in June 2005. He is also an honorary fellow of hisalma mater,St Peter's College, Oxford.[112] In May 2006, he was awarded theBAFTA Fellowship at theBAFTA TV Awards.
In 2003, Loach received an honorary doctorate fromHeriot-Watt University[113] and received the 2003Praemium Imperiale (lit. "World Culture Prize in Memory of His Imperial HighnessPrince Takamatsu") in the category Film/Theatre. In 2006, theCapri Hollywood International Film Festival honoured him with the Capri Legend Award for his contribution to filmmaking.[114] In 2014, he was presented with theHonorary Golden Bear at the64th Berlin International Film Festival.[115][116] TheRaindance Film Festival announced in September 2016 that it would be honouring Loach with its inaugural Auteur Award, to recognise his "achievements in filmmaking and contribution to the film industry".[117] He was also made Honorary Associate ofLondon Film School.
Loach was among a number of artists invited byPope Francis to attend the 50th anniversary of the opening of theVatican Museums' Collection of Modern and Contemporary Art. The Pope encouraged those present to work for change in areas like social justice.[118]
In November 2012, Loach turned down theTurin Film Festival award, upon learning that theNational Museum of Cinema inTurin had outsourced cleaning and security services. The museum outsourced this labour after dismissing workers who opposed a wage cut, in addition to raising allegations of intimidation and harassment. Loach publicly stated that his refusal to accept the award from the museum was an act of solidarity with these workers.[119]
In April 2018, Loach was awarded an honorary doctorate by theUniversité libre de Bruxelles (Free University of Brussels). Belgium's Prime MinisterCharles Michel objected.[120] Belgian Jewish organisations campaigned for Loach not to receive the honorary doctorate. The previous evening, during a speech at Brussels Grand Synagogue, to mark the 70th anniversary of Israel's foundation, Michel said: "No accommodation with antisemitism can be tolerated, whatever its form. And that also goes for my own alma mater".[121] His office told the BelgianDe Standaard news website the comments could apply to Loach's honorary doctorate.[120] At a press conference before the award, Loach asked: "Is the law so badly taught here? Or did he not pass his exam?"[121] In a press release, Loach said the claim about his alleged antisemitism was "malicious".[122] The rector of the Free University of Brussels, Yvon Englert, supported Loach.[121]
Loach's films have won thePalme d'Or, the festival's top award, a joint-record twice (The Wind That Shakes the Barley in 2006 andI, Daniel Blake in 2016), theJury Prize a joint-record three times (Hidden Agenda in 1990,Raining Stones in 1993, andThe Angels' Share in 2012) as well as theFIPRESCI Prize three times (Black Jack in 1979,Riff-Raff in 1991 andLand and Freedom in 1995) and thePrize of the Ecumenical Jury twice (Land and Freedom in 1995 andLooking for Eric in 2009). Loach's collaborators have also won awards at the festival for their work on his films:Peter Mullan wonBest Actor forMy Name Is Joe in 1998, andPaul Laverty wonBest Screenplay forSweet Sixteen in 2002.
While Loach's films have only occasionally been entered into theVenice andBerlin Film Festivals (generally regarded as the main rivals of Cannes), he has won awards at both, including, most notably, their respective lifetime achievement awards: theHonorary Golden Lion in 1994, and theHonorary Golden Bear in 2014.
Other major awards won by Loach include theBAFTA for Outstanding British Film (I, Daniel Blake in 2016) andBIFA for Best British Independent Film (My Name is Joe in 1998 andSweet Sixteen in 2002), theCésar Award for Best Foreign Film (Land and Freedom in 1995 andI, Daniel Blake in 2016), theEuropean Film Award for Best Film (Riff-Raff in 1992 andLand and Freedom in 1995), and theBelgian Film Critics Association Grand Prix (Raining Stones in 1993).
In addition, Loach's 1969 classicKes was judged the 7th best British film of the 20th century by theBritish Film Institute, and the 4th best British film ever made byTime Out, while his 1966 television playCathy Come Home was ranked the second best British TV programme, also by the BFI, and the best ever single television drama in a readers' poll conducted by theRadio Times. Loach's 1997/2005 documentaryMcLibel, meanwhile, featured in the BFI's landmarkTen Documentaries which Changed the World series.[123]
