Enjoy walking? Seeking inspiration? The Slow Ways team were recently treated to a screening of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry… and we loved it!
The new walking-themed film, starring Jim Broadbent, is in cinemas from the 28th of April, and Slow Ways has partnered with the film’s distributor eOne to give away two tickets to a gala screening. Read on for more information about the film and how to win.
THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY is the story of an unremarkable man who sets off on a remarkable journey. Harold lives a life without purpose until he learns an old friend is dying and vows that in walking across England to see her, his journey can keep her alive. Based on the 2012 New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller of the same name, this heartfelt take on the coming-of-age narrative will resonate with audiences of all ages.
Recently retired, Harold Fry is well into his 60s and content to fade quietly into the background of life. Harold’s life with his wife Maureen is uneventful and their marriage frozen, due to an unspeakable conflict relating to the absence of their son, until one day, Harold learns his old friend Queenie is dying. He sets off to the post office to send her a letter and decides to keep walking: all the way to her hospice, 450 miles away. A story of rediscovery and transformation, HAROLD FRY is an uplifting reminder that you’re never too old to take a chance, and that kindness is less rare than you think.
HAROLD FRY’s heartfelt narrative is anchored by poignant performances from Academy Award Winner Jim Broadbent as Harold, alongside Dame Penelope Wilton DBE as his wife Maureen. It is the first work from British stage and screen director Hettie Macdonald since her successful BBC adaptation of Normal People (she also directed 1996 hit Beautiful Thing).
The film was developed with the support of The British Film Institute and Film4 and awarded National Lottery Funding. Author Rachel Joyce, who won the 2012 UK National Book Award for the New Writer of the Year, also penned the screenplay. HAROLD FRY was shot sequentially on location across the UK, mirroring Harold’s own pilgrimage.
A Waylist inspired by Harold’s Journey
We have put together a Slow Ways Waylist inspired by Harold Fry. Spanning over 600 miles from Kingsbridge in Cornwall to Berwick-upon-Tweed in Northumberland, this coast to coast journey is soon to become a reality with the help of Slow Ways volunteers. The purple routes have already been verified, while the green routes have not yet been walked and reviewed by three or more people. Click here if you would like to walk all or part of this England-spanning Waylist.
Share a journey or pilgrimage you’d like to go on and win gala screening tickets!
We’re giving away two free tickets to a special gala screening of the The Unlikely Journey of Harold Fry to one lucky winner. Taking place on Tuesday 18th April, from 7pm at a central London location, the event includes a drinks reception followed by a private screening.
To be in with a chance to win, simply share with us two places on the Slow Ways network you would like to walk between and tell us why you’d like to undertake this journey: click here to enter the competition!
Send your entries by 6pm on Friday 14th April. We’ll be judging for originality and heart.
*Please note, travel and accommodation costs are not included
