YES BLOG

Home Turf

Many friends, old and new, came to this screening, which was a one-off preview, part of the season dedicated to the work (and influence) of John Berger. He arrived with Beverley Berger and Simon McBurney, his frequent theatrical collaborator. They sat together in the back row and I was acutely aware of their presence throughout.

Screenings on home turf always have a particular quality, as John laughingly reminded me before we went in, and indeed I had more stagefright at a 110-seat screen at the Ritzy in Brixton than in the (often much larger) cinemas in other countries. Perhaps it was so many familiar faces in the audience, or the feeling that there was no possibility of hiding, even behind disingenuous modesty.

Gareth Evans (editor of 'Vertigo' and organiser of this season of events) introduced the film and I tried briefly to explain John's involvement, but the piece I wrote for that season’s catalogue says it better. Here it is: