Director’s a lifelong Left-winger

MICHAEL Winterbottom is a selfconfessed lifelong Labour supporter, though he does admit that he became disillusioned with Tony Blair over the invasion of Iraq.

The director’s pals are predominately Leftie luvvies. One of his closest is Steve Coogan, who is outspoken about his views and, in the run-up to the 2019 Election, urged the public to vote for Jeremy Corbyn. Another close friend is Stephen Fry, who has revealed how he considered running to be a Labour MP in the 1990s.

Winterbottom’s company is even called Revolutionary Films.

He and Coogan most recently collaborated on the 2020 movie Greed, which satirised the downfall of businessman Philip Green. It was Winterbottom’s fourth movie starring Coogan, following 24 Hour Party People, A Cock And Bull Story and The Look Of Love.

The two have also done three series of TV’s The Trip. Winterbottom, 59, who grew up in Blackburn, recently claimed that the UK Government’s attitude to the BBC and Channel 4 would result in everyday British stories being ‘totally marginalised’.