Poor Cow

Ken Loach's "kitchen sink" drama officially marks the director's move from television to cinema.

A young woman is left pregnant and living in poverty when her husband is taken to jail. She optimistically begins a relationship with his best friend but as she attempts to negotiate the radical sexual mores of late-sixties London her lack of material resources, and the two men's lack of consideration for her feelings, eventually pave a path to insecurity and uncertainty.

Curator's note

Ken Loach's debut feature film is a compassionate encapsulation of working life in East London. A star-maker for Carol White who had already won hearts in Ken Loach's earlier television play Cathy Come Home, the film which was a surprise box office hit, propelled her career forward. Despite her character Joy perhaps not making the best decisions in life, the film actively avoids telling a morality tale, instead setting characters on a rollercoaster ride of circumstance and underprivilege while respecting their journey.

– Reece Goodwin, Curator (Film & TV)