Mike Leigh’s cult TV drama Nuts in May on Blu-ray from the BFI in August
Director Mike Leigh’s influential tale Nuts in May was first shown in the BBC’s Play for Today strand in 1976 and soon achieved cult status. This August, the BFI brings it to Blu-ray for the very first time, newly restored for its 50th anniversary. Extras include a 2026 interview with Mike Leigh, the audio recording of a 2021 reunion Q&A with the director and cast which took place at BFI Southbank and much more.
Their Morris Minor packed to the gills, punctilious Keith (Roger Sloman) and the more spontaneous Candice Marie (Alison Steadman) arrive at a Dorset campground for 10 nights of bucolic bliss. It all starts perfectly; they take in the sights, eat vegetarian food and go in search of raw milk. Then a student teacher pitches his tent near them and cranks up his radio. Next, a couple arrive on a motorcycle, noisily make love in their tent and build an unauthorised campfire. Can Keith and Candice Marie find their peaceful idyll or are they doomed to clash with the uncouth and unwashed?
Nuts in May on UK Blu-ray by the BFI on 17 August 2026 at the RRP of £19.99, but the pre-order price from the BFI store of £16.99.
BFI BLU-RAY CONTENTS:
- Newly restored by the BBC in 4K and presented in High Definition
- Archive commentary by Mike Leigh (2009)
- Mike Leigh Remembers… Nuts in May (2026, 14 mins): the director looks back on one of his most influential television plays
- Director and Cast Q&A (2021, audio, 43 mins): Mike Leigh, Alison Steadman, Roger Sloman, Anthony O’Donnell, Sheila Kelley and Stephen Bill are reunited on stage at BFI Southbank
- BFI London Film Festival 2024 Screen Talk: Mike Leigh (2024, 48 mins): celebrating the 2024 release of his film Hard Truths, Leigh discusses his career with writer and journalist Amy Raphael
- The Country Comes to Town (1933, 21 mins): a documentary made to help modernise the image of farming and the British countryside
- Spring Comes to England (1934, 16 mins): documentary on the journey produce makes from field to market – including Candice Marie’s favourite, mushrooms
- Winter on the Farm (1941, 15 mins): a public information film on Upton Manor Farm in Dorset
- The Chiffy Kids: Pot Luck (1976, 19 mins): the Children’s Film Foundation favourites take a holiday under canvas
- Play Safe: Camping and Fishing (1978, 2 mins): a safety awareness film showing the dangers lurking in the countryside