The Read: Season 1, Episode 1

1 - 1: The Lonely Londoners

The Lonely Londoners portrays the experience of a group of Caribbean immigrants, known as the Windrush Generation, who arrived in London in the late 1940s and 50s searching for work and a prosperous future. Instead, they have to face the harsh realities of living hand to mouth, of racism, of bleak British weather and bleaker prospects. And though friendships and family flourish among these lonely Londoners, can they learn to survive?

The Lonely Londoners is performed by Danielle Vitalis and directed by Yero Tim-Bui who juxtapose modern imagery and fascinating archive footage to reflect on how Sam Selvon's 1956 novel shaped the London of today.