Mike Leigh will be visiting the Guardian office on Wednesday lunchtime ahead of the release this Friday of his latest film, Another Year. We'll be ushering the director in front of a computer to answer questions on his work, his life and – who knows? – maybe his women too.
Another Year, for the record, is Leigh's 19th feature in a career that stretches all the way back to Bleak Moments in 1971. He spent the bulk of the 70s and 80s making teleplays for the BBC (rustling up a whopping 16m viewers for Abigail's Party – thanks in large part, he says, to a stormy night and a blackout over on ITV) before returning to the big screen with 1988's High Hopes. His other work includes the scabrous Naked, the Palme d'Or-winning Secrets and Lies and the Bafta-winning Vera Drake.
Leigh famously begins his films without a script, coaxing a drama out of an extensive rehearsal period, so let's not start drafting this interview in advance. The director trails such a long and rich history (on cinema, TV and stage) that it's unlikely we'll be stuck for conversation, although in recent weeks Leigh has been in the news for cancelling a scheduled trip to Israel, for reportedly labelling a lot of actors "thick", and for apparently expressing a belief in crop circles. You might care to ask if he's planning a remake of Signs. Then again you may not, because Leigh is known for not suffering what he regards as foolish questions gladly. Probably safer to stick to the films he has made. That's more than enough to be getting on with.
