‘No pension, no career, no future’: Grim reality behind the scenes of British TV and film industry
In terms of glamour and escapism, it doesn’t get much bigger than the Baftas and, while this weekend, the great and the good from British cinema will be getting ready to party, further down the food chain for those working behind the scenes there’s little cause to celebrate.
New research conducted exclusively for Sky News by the broadcasting union BECTU paints a bleak picture of what life is really like for ordinary workers within the British TV and film industry.
Thousands got in touch to report a dire shortage of paid work, with many saying they’re stressed, some even suicidal, taking on mounting debts to keep afloat financially.
“I feel abandoned,” one respondent wrote. “I’ve dedicated my life to this career and overnight everything I’ve worked towards has fallen apart.”
Another explained: “The whole experience is making me realise the sheer fragility of the industry and the money we earn simply isn’t enough.”
“I have never known a more dire situation… there is zero work around,” wrote another.
While, certainly in film, there had been the assumption that after SAG-AFTRA strikes ended last autumn work would slowly start to resume at the start of this year, for many that simply hasn’t been the case.
SAG-AFTRA members on strike in the US in August – the walkout lasted 118 days. Pic: Reuters
Last September – before the industrial action was over – 74% of BECTU union members said they were out of work.
Now, of the 4,160 people who responded to the Sky News/BECTU poll, it would seem little has changed with 68% writing to say that’s still the case.
Those who are booking jobs wrote back to say their roles are changing, with many saying they’re now being overworked and asked to do more for less.
‘I had a breakdown on my last job’
We were told: “Positions… that are advertised seem to roll up about three or four jobs into one role – and the pay is linked to the most junior role.”
Another wrote to say: “Unauthorised overtime… is now the norm. I had a breakdown on my last job… the job before that, it was a common occurrence to see crew crying in the middle of the workshop.”
Thirty per cent reported having had no work at all in the past three months, while 34% have had less than a month’s worth of work since the US industrial action reached a settlement.
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Drill down into those figures for the past three months and freelancers who are black or Asian are less likely to have worked than their white colleagues (29% of white respondents had not worked at all, compared to 38% of respondents who are Asian and 32% of black respondents).
‘I’m at my wit’s end’
The precarious nature of working in UK production, for some, has become untenable.
This is summed up by one woman who said: “As an ethnic minority working mum… it’s all for nothing.
“I feel valueless and aggrieved that all those years of working crazy hours and lack of security is for nothing.”
Another wrote: “After this slowdown, there’ll be no more diversity, we’ll have gone back 20 years in terms of only the elite being able to afford to work in the industry.
“I’m at my wit’s end. I feel as though I may have to sell my house. My marriage is under strain as I can’t financially contribute.”
Of those surveyed 86% reported finding things either extremely difficult financially (42%) or more difficult than normal.
Understandably it is affecting people’s mental health, with more than a quarter saying they were really struggling – some of whom responded to say they’d had breakdowns, or even become suicidal as a result.
There’s also an increase in people taking on loans or unsecured debt to cover their bills (23% up from 15% in September).
Charlotte Sewell, an assistant costume designer working on the Mission Impossible franchise, told Sky News that while she knew it was unlikely the industry would immediately bounce back after the US strikes ended last year, her worst fears have been realised.
Charlotte Sewell’s worst fears have been realised
“I think we all thought that what was shooting would come up quickly but new stuff, we were concerned… and unfortunately, it’s come true.”
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Industry slowdown across the board
The US strikes seemingly masked a much wider industry slowdown which is now being experienced across the board in both film and TV with television commissioning seeming to tail off as the industry experiences its worst advertising downturn in 15 years.
Until recently, unscripted projects, as they’re known, were a reliable all-year-round source of employment, but now 65% of people who once worked in reality TV are out of work.
For over two decades James Taylor has worked as a series producer on some of the biggest reality shows on TV, including the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing and ITV’s Saturday Night Takeaway.
He told Sky News: “It’s easy to see that the strikes in America are having a direct issue in the UK, whereas something that’s less quantifiable is the commissioning slowdown here in the UK.
“You can’t really put your finger on it because the broadcasters aren’t releasing stats on that and saying we are commissioning fewer programmes.
‘It’s easy to see that the strikes in America are having a direct issue in the UK’, says James
“The economics within the industry are changing and all freelancers want to know is some information… if we know that there are going to be fewer programmes made here in the UK going forward, people can look for a job elsewhere.
“[Instead] there’s been this sort of tantalising prospect that things will get back to normal in a few weeks or months so people are waiting, in the meantime struggling to pay their bills and mortgages.”
More than a quarter (26%) of those surveyed reported really struggling with their mental health as a result of the drop off of available work, with a number of respondents reporting having had breakdowns or becoming suicidal as a result.
‘No pension, no career, no future’
As the head of BECTU, Philippa Childs, explained: “It’s a perfect storm. There are tens of thousands of people who work in this industry and they’re facing a crisis… this is a real crisis for the industry.”
“I think we all hoped 2023 was a bit of a blip… but unfortunately that hasn’t proven to be the case… people are really getting very desperate.”
Not only does the British TV and film industry generate billions of pounds for the economy, it also employs tens of thousands of people and a dream career for many skilled workers in this country has now become a nightmare.
As one woman wrote: “We’re told it’s part of the risk of choosing this job we’re “so lucky” to have… yet what do we have to show for it? Nothing. No pension. No career. No future… It feels like redundancy without any severance package.”
Despite The Who’s Quadrophenia being set over 60 years ago, Pete Townshend’s themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.
The album is having a renaissance as Pete Townshend’s Quadrophenia A Mod ballet is being brought to life via dance at Sadler’s Wells East, and Sky News has an exclusive first look.
As Townshend puts it, the album he wrote is “perfect” for the stage.
Pete Townshend
“My wife Rachel did the orchestration for me, and as soon as I heard it I said to her it would make a fabulous ballet and we never really let that go,” he tells Sky News.
“Heavy percussion, concussive sequences. They’re explosive moments. They’re also romantic movement moments.”
If you identify with the demographics of Millennial, Gen Y or Gen Z, you might not be familiar with The Who and Mod culture.
But in post-war Britain the Mods were a cultural phenomenon characterised by fashion, music, and of course, scooters. The young rebels were seen as a counter-culture to the establishment and The Who, with Roger Daltry’s lead vocals and Pete Townshend’s writing, were the soundtrack.
Quadrophenia the album is widely regarded as an essay on the British adolescent experience at the time, focusing on the life of fictional protagonist Jimmy – a young Mod struggling with his sanity, self-doubt, and alienation.
Townshend sets the rock opera in 1965 but thinks its themes of identity, mental health, and modern masculinity are just as relevant today.
He says: “The phobias and the restrictions and the unwritten laws about how young men should behave. The ground that they broke, that we broke because I was a part of it.
“Men were letting go of [the] wartime-related, uniform-related stance that if I wear this kind of outfit it makes me look like a man.”
Paris Fitzpatrick and Pete Townshend. Pic: Johan Persson
This struggle of modern masculinity and identity appears to be echoing today as manosphere influencers like Andrew Tate, incel culture, and Netflix’s Adolescence make headlines.
For dancer Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy, the story resonates.
Paris Fitzpatrick, who takes on the lead role of Jimmy in the ballet
“I think there’s a connection massively and I think there may even be a little more revival in some way,” he tells Sky News.
“I love that myself. I love non-conforming to gender norms and typical masculinity; I think it’s great to challenge things.”
Despite the album being written before he was born, the dancer says he was familiar with the genre already.
“I actually did an art GCSE project about Mods and rockers and Quadrophenia,” he says.
“I think we’ll be able to bring it to new audiences and hopefully, maybe people will be inspired to to learn more about their music and the whole cultural movement of the early 60s.”
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In 1979, the album was adapted into a film directed by Franc Roddam starring Ray Winstone and Sting but Townshend admits because the film missed key points he is “not a big fan”.
“What it turned out to be in the movie was a story about culture, about social scenario and less about really the specifics of mental illness and how that affects young people,” he adds, also complimenting Roddam’s writing for the film.
Perhaps a testament to Pete Townshend’s creativity, Quadrophenia started as an album, was successfully adapted to film and now it will hit the stage as a contemporary ballet.
It appears that over six decades later Mod culture is still cool and their issues still relatable.
Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet will tour to Plymouth Theatre Royal from 28 May to 1 June 2025, Edinburgh Festival Theatre from 10 to 14 June 2025 and the Mayflower, Southampton from 18 to 21 June 2025 before having its official opening at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London on 24 June running to 13 July 2025 and then visiting The Lowry, Salford from 15 to 19 July 2025.
Russell Brand has been charged with rape and two counts of sexual assault between 1999 and 2005.
The Metropolitan Police say the 50-year-old comedian, actor and author has also been charged with one count of oral rape and one count of indecent assault.
The charges relate to four women.
He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday 2 May.
Police have said Brand is accused of raping a woman in the Bournemouth area in 1999 and indecently assaulting a woman in the Westminster area of London in 2001.
He is also accused of orally raping and sexually assaulting a woman in Westminster in 2004.
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Ashna Hurynag discusses Russell Brand’s charges
The fourth charge alleges that a woman was sexually assaulted in Westminster between 2004 and 2005.
Police began investigating Brand, from Oxfordshire, in September 2023 after receiving a number of allegations.
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The comedian has denied the accusations and said he has “never engaged in non-consensual activity”.
He added in a video on X: “Of course, I am now going to have the opportunity to defend these charges in court, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.”
Metropolitan Police Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy, who is leading the investigation, said: “The women who have made reports continue to receive support from specially trained officers.
“The Met’s investigation remains open and detectives ask anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone who has any information, to come forward and speak with police.”
Tom Cruise has paid tribute to Val Kilmer, wishing his Top Gun co-star “well on the next journey”.
Cruise, speaking at the CinemaCon film event in Las Vegas on Thursday, asked for a moment’s silence to reflect on the “wonderful” times shared with the star, whom he called a “dear friend”.
Kilmer, who died of pneumonia on Tuesday aged 65, rocketed to fame starring alongside Cruise in the 1986 blockbuster Top Gun, playing Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky, a rival fighter pilot to Cruise’s character Maverick.
Tom Cruise said ‘I wish you well on the next journey’. Pic: AP
Val Kilmer in 2017. Pic: AP
His last part was a cameo role in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
Cruise, on stage at Caesars Palace on Thursday, said: “I’d like to honour a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer. I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honoured I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick.
“I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.
“I wish you well on the next journey.”
The moment of silence followed a string of tributes from Hollywood figures including Cher, Francis Ford Coppola, Antonio Banderas and Michelle Monaghan.
Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times on Wednesday that the actor had died from pneumonia.
Tom Cruise at Caesars Palace on Thursday. Pic: AP
Diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer discussed his illness and recovery in his 2020 memoir Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime documentary Val.
He underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for the disease and also had a tracheostomy which damaged his vocal cords and permanently gave him a raspy speaking voice.
Kilmer played Batman in the 1995 film Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of rock singer Jim Morrison in the 1991 movie The Doors.
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He also starred in True Romance and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, as well as playing criminal Chris Shiherlis in Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat and Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone.
In 1988 he married British actress Joanne Whalley, whom he met while working on fantasy adventure Willow.
The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.
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