Britannia Hospital

Britannia Hospital is a 1982 feature film by British director Lindsay Anderson. A black comedy, it targets the National Health Service, and by extension, contemporary Britain. It was entered into the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. The story involves the opening of a new wing at Britannia Hospital. The Queen Mother (referred to as HRH) is due to arrive, and the administrator, Potter (Leonard Rossiter) is confronted with demonstrators protesting agains... more

Britannia Hospital is a 1982 feature film by British director Lindsay Anderson. A black comedy, it targets the National Health Service, and by extension, contemporary Britain. It was entered into the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. The story involves the opening of a new wing at Britannia Hospital. The Queen Mother (referred to as HRH) is due to arrive, and the administrator, Potter (Leonard Rossiter) is confronted with demonstrators protesting against an African dictator who is a VIP patient, striking ancillary workers (opposed to the exotic gastronomic demands of the hospital's private patients) and a less-than-cooperative Professor Millar Graham Crowden, the head of the new wing. Rather than cancel the royal visit, Potter decides to go out and reason with the protestors. He strikes a deal with the protest leader — the private patients of Britannia Hospital are to be ejected and, in return, the protestors allow a number of ambulances into the hospital. However, unbeknown to the... less