Becoming Victoria Wood: Trailer, certificate and where to watch
Top notch feature-length profile of the trailblazing British comic
Year: 2026
Certificate: 15
'All I ever wanted to do was to be funny... I can't imagine a better job.' Originally released in cinemas, this beautifully stitched profile of Victoria Wood is an absolute treat. Throughout its 90-minute length we hear from the trailblazing comic through her stand-up, sketches and interviews, and also from those she worked with and knew her best.
This includes the stars, such as Maxine Peake (who got her TV big break on Wood's sitcom, Dinnerladies), Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, Joan Armatrading and Michael Ball, but the film really starts to take off when it comes to the friends from school and university. They give you so much that you may not already know.
Schoolfriend Lesley Schatzberger remembers first meeting 'Vicky as we called her then' through music, and how she was 'good at what she wanted to be good at' which, often, wasn't subjects the school had chosen to teach. Another friend remembers Wood as 'quite scruffy', with 'droopy socks and a sort of slouch', while a university pal remembers how she would openly 'mock the tutors'.
The film is also helped by Wood's scrapbook collection of scripts, letters, clippings and photographs, which are read by actress Jessica Barden (The End of the F***ing World) in character. There are so many strands to this film that, whether you were aware of Wood for her whole career or are just coming to her fresh (how wonderful, if you are) there will be something here for you. (90 minutes)
