Prick Up Your Ears

Prick Up Your Ears

111 mins | Drama | April 17, 1987

Stephen Frears directs this biographical drama focusing on controversial British playwright Joe Orton, revealed in flashback after his murder by lover Kenneth Halliwell. Born in 1933 in Leicester, in the English Midlands, John 'Joe' Orton moves to London in 1951, to study at RADA, and enjoys an openly gay relationship with Halliwell in their famous Islington flat in the 1960s. However, when Orton achieves spectacular success with such plays as 'What the Butler Saw' and 'Loot', Halliwell begins to feel alienated and the pair's future looks increasingly uncertain.

Prick Up Your Ears

111 mins | Drama | April 17, 1987

Prick Up Your Ears
Stephen Frears directs this biographical drama focusing on controversial British playwright Joe Orton, revealed in flashback after his murder by lover Kenneth Halliwell. Born in 1933 in Leicester, in the English Midlands, John 'Joe' Orton moves to London in 1951, to study at RADA, and enjoys an openly gay relationship with Halliwell in their famous Islington flat in the 1960s. However, when Orton achieves spectacular success with such plays as 'What the Butler Saw' and 'Loot', Halliwell begins to feel alienated and the pair's future looks increasingly uncertain.
IMDb rating 7.1
Producers Zenith Productions, British Screen Productions, Civilhand
Original title Prick Up Your Ears
Directors Adam Walton, Michael Zimbrich, Lee Cleary, Penny Eyles, Stephen Frears
Writers John Lahr, Alan Bennett

Cast

Gary Oldman

as Joe Orton

Alfred Molina

as Kenneth Halliwell

Vanessa Redgrave

as Peggy Ramsay

Frances Barber

as Leonie Orton

Lindsay Duncan

as Anthea Lahr

Julie Walters

as Elsie Orton

Wallace Shawn

as John Lahr

Janet Dale

as Mrs. Sugden

Dave Atkins

as Mr Sugden

Garry Cooper

as Mr. Sloane Actor

Roger Lloyd Pack

as Actor 2

Sean Pertwee

as Orton's Friends

Helena Michell

as Orton's Friends

Selina Cadell

as Miss Battersby

Neil Dudgeon

as Policeman

Richard Wilson

as Psychiatrist

Steven Mackintosh

as Simon Ward

Karl Johnson

as Douglas Orton

David Bradley

as Undertaker

Joan Sanderson

as Anthea's Mother

Spencer Leigh

as Constable

Neville Smith

as Police Inspector

John Salthouse

as Chauffeur

David Cardy

as Brian Epstein

John Moffatt

as Wigmaker

Charles McKeown

as Mr Cunliffe

Margaret Tyzack

as Madame Lambert

James Grant

as William Orton

Eric Richard

as Education Officer

William Job

as RADA Chairman

Rosalind Knight

as RADA Judge

Angus MacKay

as RADA Judge

Linda Spurrier

as RADA Instructor

Bert Parnaby

as Magistrate

Liam De Staic

as Brickie

Antony Carrick

as Counsel

Christopher Guinee

as Publisher

Stevan Rimkus

as Kenneth

Anthony Douse

as BBC Actor 2

John Kane

as Director

Joanne Connelly

as Stage Manager

Noel Davis

as Philip

Philippa Davies

as Peggy Ramsey's Secretary

Julie Legrand

as Gallery Owner

Jane Blackburn

as Woman in Gallery

Stella Richman

as Woman in Gallery 2

Jonny Phillips

as Youth Outside Lavatory

Richard Ireson

as Man Outside Lavatory

Ahmed Elgheur

as Moroccan Boy 1

Moktar Dagmouni

as Moroccan Boy 2

Sian Thomas

as Marilyn Orton

Stephen Bill

as George Barnett

Max Stafford-Clark

as Awards Chairman

Simon Adams

as Undertaker's Boy

Mark Brignal

as Beatle's Chauffeur / Beatles Chauffeur

Robin Hooper

as Mortuary Attendant

Derek Jarman

as Patrick Proktor

Michael Müller

as BBC Actor 1