Synopsis
BBC Arena's documentary on the Dames of British Theatre and film featuring Maggie Smith, Elieen Atkins, Judi Dench and Joan Plowright on screen together for the first time as they reminisce over a long summer weekend in a house Joan once shared with Sir Laurence Olivier.
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Cast
- Maggie SmithHerself
- Judi DenchHerself
- Eileen AtkinsHerself
- Joan PlowrightHerself
- Robert AltmanSelf (archive footage)
- Frank FinlaySelf (archive footage)
- John GielgudSelf (archive footage)
- Julian GloverSelf (archive footage)
- Sheridan MorleySelf (archive footage)
- Laurence OlivierSelf (archive footage)
Recommendations
- 100
The Guardian
I would have loved to hear a discussion on a wider range of issues, particularly #TimesUp, but with a film this much fun, it seems churlish to ask for anything else. - 100
Observer
Unrehearsed, spontaneous and off-the-cuff, they don’t hold back, their fearless charm is relaxed and effortless, and the relentless candor is enchanting. The result is 83 minutes of bliss spent with four Dames who know the difference between truth and illusion, and generously give a great deal of both. In Tea with the Dames, boredom is not an option. - 90
The New York Times
I would not have minded a bit if the dames were given twice the amount of time this trim film allowed. - 90
TheWrap
Tea With the Dames, from director Roger Michell (“Notting Hill”), is as cozy and satisfying as its title suggests. - 88
New York Post
In a perfect world, Tea With the Dames could be a series. Let us be flies on the wall for this posse’s weekly gathering for tea and convivial cackling. And I say this with the delighted surety that they would tell anyone who proposed this idea to go straight to hell. - 88
RogerEbert.com
Michell’s film allows us the privilege to spend an unscripted hour or so with the four acting goddesses during their routine visit to Plowright’s home in the English countryside, and though our time with them is brief, the very thought of our world existing in their absence is almost unbearable. - 88
LarsenOnFilm
It’s all immensely entertaining, revealing, and moving—especially the occasional silences, when they sit comfortably together and the shared years fill the open space. - 80
The Telegraph
In a breezy chat, the quartet are mostly unwilling to dwell on unpleasant subjects, so Michell uses archive footage to spell out the subtext.
