Cream in My Coffee (1980) (TV)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Gavin Millar

Writer:

Dennis Potter (written by)

Release Date:

2 November 1980 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Musical

Plot:

Past and present intertwine: An elderly couple returns to the hotel where they became close when they...

Plot Keywords:

Drink In Title

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Lionel Jeffries	...	Bernard Wilsher
Peggy Ashcroft	...	Jean Wilsher
Martin Shaw	...	Jack Butcher
Peter Chelsom	...	Young Bernard
Shelagh McLeod	...	Young Jean
Faith Brook	...	Mrs. Wilsher
Leo Dolan	...	Hotel Porter, present (as Leo Dollan)
Will Stampe	...	Hotel Porter, past
Dawn Perllman	...	Waitress, past
Pik Sen Lim	...	Hotel Maid (as Pik-Sen Lim)
Walter Sparrow	...	Boatman
Howard Attfield	...	Waiter
Robert Fyfe	...	Vicar
Tracey Eddon	...	Girl in Pool
Famous Names	...	Rock Group

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Certification:

UK:12

Filming Locations:

Grand Hotel, Eastbourne, East Sussex, England, UK

Company:

London Weekend Television (LWT)

Brilliant Dpeiction Of Old Age

I first saw this when I was seventeen and I have never forgotten it. Lionel Jeffries and Peggy Ashcroft are unforgettable as the old couple who cannot recapture the past. In flashback we see the past wasn't so glorious either: the young Bernard is patronising and class-conscious and Jean is silly and manipulative. Old age has rarely been presented with such honesty. It's a comfort-less film: if it wasn't for Potter's mischievous wit it would be hard viewing, but still compelling. I got a DVD of it, along with Blade On the Feather and Rain On the Roof and they all still hold up today, but I think this is probably the best of the three.