I own this movie, on region 2 dvd. To my knowledge it's not available here on dvd in the US. I'm pretty sure it's never aired in the US either but not 100% on that. So, that's out of the way.
This TV movie is about the life of Marie Lloyd, a famous singer who lived during the early 20th century. Back before TV or film there were concert halls, live entertainment. Of course concert halls still existed after movies came out. For the most part people got there entertainment threw these halls were you could see comedy skits, musical numbers, dancing, even raunchy stuff like strip teases. Well, Marie Lloyd became pretty famous by singing songs about everyday life, even raunchy songs. Well, raunchy for the times. Lloyd was constantly in tabloids for her love affairs, what she did out in her public life. Lloyd came from a not so great childhood upbringing to get her start on the stage at 18. She worked incredibly hard and soon became the talk of the town. Threw out her entire career she had people protesting her due to her more racy songs, her appearance on stage, whatever they could complain about. Her songs were popular on the radio. She had some unsuccessful marriages and unfortunately later on in her life she became an alcoholic. She had a daughter but wasn't the best of mothers. Her funeral was attended by thousands of people to pay tribute to a woman who was generally loved. Lloyd was a slave to her work, to her fans and thrived on their attention and devotion to her.
Jessie Wallace stars as Marie Lloyd. She does a pretty good job. I don't think I have ever seen her in anything before. What I really liked about this film was that it was a musical. You got to hear Lloyd's songs and her bits acted out. I enjoyed it for that. Plus Richard Armitage (Thorton from North & South) played one of her husbands. It's always a bonus when he's in something. Though that marriage headed south with his cheating and gambling away her money. Amanda Root is played a religious woman at the heart of trying to get people to boycott Lloyd's shows and music.
The film is completely filmed on a sound stage. You can always tell it's a set. I think that was the point, I could be reading way to much into it. Since Marie Lloyd lived her life mainly on the stage, this film really felt and looked like it was on a stage for every aspect of her life. The musical numbers were fantastic. The cast was great, and the costumes were top notch. This is a BBC production after all, their costumes are always top notch.
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