Producer Beth Earl has spent the last four years bringing Broken English, a documentary about Marianne Faithfull, to life. What started as a simple idea after reading an article about Marianne turned into a creative adventure with directors Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard (20,000 Days on Earth). The film celebrates Marianne as the fearless, funny, and original artist she’s always been.
In late August this year, the team took Broken English to Venice for its world premiere at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, where it received a standing ovation, before heading home to London for a packed screening at the BFI London Film Festival. These are Beth’s postcards and notes from both premieres – snapshots of dinners, stormy boat rides, last-minute arrivals, and unforgettable nights. Together, they tell the story behind the scenes of Broken English and capture the excitement of finally sharing Marianne’s story with the world.
August 28th, 2025
It started with an idea – and a deep admiration for Marianne Faithfull – that turned into a four-year journey to bring Broken English, a creative documentary about Marianne’s life, to the big screen.
After reading an article about Marianne, I was inspired to produce a film showing her as the fierce trailblazer she’s always been. I reached out to the incredibly talented directors Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard (20,000 Days on Earth) to see if they would be interested in telling her story. Today, we landed in Venice – four years to the day that I first emailed them. It’s been a labour of love and after all the twists and turns, Broken English is set to premiere on August 30th at the Sala Grande at the The 82nd Venice International Film Festival.
Thank you Marianne for teaching us the meaning of strength and resilience, and for trusting us to tell your story, we cannot wait to share your film with the world!
August 29th
1/6 Left: I met Iain and Jane and George MacKay at Casa I Wonder, a private space on the Lido where our wonderful Italian distributors, I Wonder, hosted us for the day. This is actually the villa in front of I Wonder, not I Wonder’s. I was lost, of course… But it’s the only photo I took on the way. Right: George, Iain, Jane and I and Liam Coutts all on our phones! No doubt working out boat logistics, a real concern at the festival.. Especially when dealing with storms and ‘rain never seen before’ in Venice! Photo by Maurizio Bresciani.
August 30th, Premiere Day
After the premiere, we headed to Casa I Wonder to celebrate. Until next time Venice.. We are all so grateful to the festival and Alberto Barbera for hosting us. We couldn’t have dreamed of a more magical way to share the film for the first time.
October 11th
Next Stop: BFI London Film Festival. Saturday night, October 11th, we had our UK premiere at NFT1 BFI Southbank (All images by Joseph Lynn). London felt like a homecoming as we were fortunate enough to have many of the musicians who contributed to the film attend the screening, as well as a number of our cast and crew and old friends of Marianne.
