Radio On

Radio On is a 1979 British road mystery drama film directed by Christopher Petit. It is a rare example of a British road movie, shot in black and white by Wim Wenders' assistant cameraman Martin Schäfer and featuring music from a number of new wave bands of the time, as well as established artists such as Kraftwerk, Devo and David Bowie.

Plot

The film is a journey through late 1970s Britain by way of a road trip from London to Bristol, with Robert, a DJ (played by David Beames) attempting to investigate the suicide of his brother.

Cast

• David Beames as Robert
• Lisa Kreuzer as Ingrid
• Sandy Ratcliff as Kathy
• Andrew Byatt as Deserter
• Sue Jones-Davies as Girl
• Sting as Just Like Eddie
• Sabina Michael as Aunt
• Katja Kersten as German Woman
• Paul Hollywood as Kid
• Adrian Jones
• Cyril Kent
• Bernard Mistovski
• Nina Pace
• Joseph Riordan
• David Squire
• Kim Taylforth as Girl Playing Pool

Trivia

• The radio station where Robert is a disc jockey was based on the United Biscuits Network, which broadcast to factories owned by United Biscuits.

• In his 2022 book Roadrunner Nick Gilbert revisits the film, the route and its resonances 43 years later and includes contributions from Petit and others involved in the film.

References

External links

• Radio On at IMDb
• Radio On at the BFI's Screenonline
• Radio On at AllMovie
• Radio On at Time Out London