Stand-up comic who played Daniel Blake wins prestigious acting award
Dave Johns.
This Writer has no personal experience to indicate whether the award is well-deserved or not as I, Daniel Blake has yet to be screened in the wilds of Mid Wales.
That being said, the reaction to the movie, its themes and message all suggest very strongly that Mr Johns is indeed a worthy recipient and to be congratulated for his work in bringing the plight of sick and disabled benefit claimants to the attention of the world.
Note also the ‘most promising newcomer’ award for co-star Hayley Squires.
Comedian Dave Johns has won his first major acting award.
The veteran stand-up scooped best actor at the British Independent Film Awards for his role in the Ken Loach film I, Daniel Blake.
The movie, in which Johns plays a widowed carpenter who can’t get his benefits following a heart attack, previously won the prestigious Palme D’Or at Cannes.
But this is his first acting accolade. He has also been nominated in the European Film Awards, which will be handed out next weekend.
Speaking after collecting the BIFA award tonight, he said: ”I’ve been a stand-up for 27 years and no one knows who I was. Now I’ve done my first film and it’s been incredible.’ He added that the comedy circuit had been ‘amazingly supportive’ of his career change.
Johns’s co-star Hayley Squires won most promising newcomer.
Source: Dave Johns lands his first acting award
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
The Livingstone Presumption is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
Wouldn’t it be so cool if this went to America and won Oscar’s!
I saw him in an interview with Ken Loach, getting the other award, and I instantly liked him! He has strong ideas of moral justice, that is a very attractive quality in a person.
Having seen I Daniel Blake and given support to people claiming ESA My opinion is that he was superb as was Hayley Squires. If I had seen IDS upon leaving the flicks I do not think I could have restrained myself and would have had to deck him!
I, Daniel Blake was screened in Tywyn, at the Magic Lantern Cinema, in October.
That’s a long, long way away.
I never see the point of getting an award for doing your day job, and it seems to be an advertising ploy to persuade you to go and watch a movie, but if it helps to raise peoples understanding of the true facts not the governments mass media view on the subject then I have no problems with this advertising in this instance.
Apparently the film inspired Iain Duncan Smith to feel sympathy for Jobcentre staff whom he considered had been slighted by the movie. Sadly he expressed no sorrow whatsoever in respect to the suffering of the characters in the film, or regret for being one of the prime movers that put such a cruel, half-baked and ridiculous social security system into place. I really hope that Iain Duncan Smith and Lord David Freud will, one day, be answerable for what they have done. These dreadful individuals should be held accountable for their actions.