I, Daniel Blake - revisited

In 2016 the powerful Ken Loach film “I, Daniel Blake” shone a spotlight on the stark reality of how the benefit system can fail those it was created to protect and serve. Could happen to any of us.  At the centre of the story are the Geordie Daniel, a 59 year old widowed skilled carpenter no longer able to work following a heart attack, and Katie, a homeless single mother relocated from  London to the North East. They both know despair and hunger as they struggle with bureaucracy, inflexibility and inhumanity – as Daniel puts it "I am not a blip on a computer screen or a national insurance number, I am a man."    

7 Years on, actor Dave Johns, who portrayed Blake, has adapted the story for the stage; it will have its premiere in Newcastle at Northern Stage 25th May to 10th June.  The production will feature factual interviews, speeches and social media output showing the impact of government decisions on real people’s lives. https://northernstage.co.uk/whats-on/i-daniel-blake/ 

Has anything changed in the years in between? Dave Johns says that in researching his new version of the story he found its portrait of poverty more relevant than ever as the UK’s years of austerity and the cost-of-living crisis are making it even harder for those who are already struggling.    

With an estimated 14.5 million people now living in poverty in the UK, this is not fiction. It is reality. 

Many are still faced with a dysfunctional benefits system. Foodbanks were originally intended to fill the gap whilst people waited for benefits to start. Now even those in jobs rely on them to feed their families. A recent report highlighted again child poverty in the North COTN-APPG.pdf (thenhsa.co.uk) 

How to respond? Daniel and Katie show the strength to be had in supporting each other, and in making their voices heard to try to reshape the system. Can we play our part in both ways, and try to make a difference in our local community and in our national politics? 

Christine Brown