Dance with a Stranger

Dance with a Stranger is a 1985 British drama. Mike Newell directed the movie and Miranda Richardson and Rupert Everett starred in the leading roles. Richardson won the Best Actress award at the Evening Standard British Film Awards. The movie tells the story of Ruth Ellis who was the last woman to be hanged in Britain. The story takes place in the 1950s. Shelagh Delaney wrote the screenplay. The movie was important for the political debate in Britain about capital punishment. It helped the public understand the history of capital punishment and why it was abolished in 1965 in Britain. The movie was an important stepping-stone for Richardson and Everett’s careers.