Sorry We Missed You (2019) 11.50pm, Saturday, RTÉ One

★★★★

“This is my family, and I’m telling you now, nobody messes with my family”

Following the release of Jimmy’s Hall (2014), Ken Loach declared that he would stop making features and concentrate instead on documentaries. Thankfully, reports of his retirement were greatly exaggerated and he subsequently directed the excellent I, Daniel Blake (2018) and this superb drama, Sorry We Missed You.

A powerful story ripped from the headlines, this moving drama follows the fortunes of a working class family in Newcastle. Ricky (Kris Hitchen), is a hard-working provider who has set himself up as a delivery driver. His wife, Abby (Debbie Honeywood), is a calm, kind-hearted woman who cares for the elderly. Both are victims of zero-hour contracts and the precarious gig economy. This is particularly true of Ricky who nds that every late package and missed work day (even when that day is missed because he’s in a hospital emergency room with broken ribs) will directly a ect his pay packet and land him deeper in debt with the delivery company. The demands of these deadlines are powerfully represented by the fact that before he sets out on his rst delivery, Ricky is handed two things: a tracking handset and an empty plastic bottle, a sure sign that comfort breaks are not an option.

The title Sorry We Missed You refers not just to the docket handed out by Ricky’s delivery company, but the fact that Ricky and Abby are so busy, they barely see each other, their teenage son or their young daughter. All four characters are played by relatively unknown actors who deliver strong, naturalistic performances, notably eleven-year-old Katie Proctor who may be the youngest but is actually the glue that binds this family together.