British Film Culture in the 1970s

Sue Harper is Emeritus Professor of Film History at the University of Portsmouth. She is a cultural historian who has written widely on British cinema, and made numerous appearances on radio and television. She was the Principal Investigator on the 1970s AHRC-funded project, '1970s British Cinema, Film and Video: Mainstream and Counter-Culture' (2006-2009).

Herein, Professor Harper and her droogs saunter out of the Karova milkbar, power up the Durango-95 and engage in a bit of the old ultra-analysis. The Portsmouth posse take a penetrating peek at the pictures in the period of punks, power-cuts and politicos, flinching neither at Robin Askwith's Y-fronts nor Malcolm McDowell's swastika jock-strap. Viddy well, O my brothers. Steve Chibnall, Professor of British Cinema, De Montfort University "British Film Culture in the 1970s is certain to become the definitive study of British cinema's least understood decade. Sue Harper and Justin Smith must be commended for marshalling a wealth of material into a volume that represents not only scholarship of the highest order but is also a compelling narrative in its own right. What emerges is a fascinating account of the complex relationships between economic crises and aesthetic innovation as British film-makers responded to far-reaching changes in the industry and in the wider society and culture. This is not just one of the best recent books about British cinema - it is one of the best works of film history I have read." James Chapman, Professor of Film Studies, University of Leicester