FILM OF THE WEEK

Florence Foster Jenkins – Thursday, BBC Four, 8pm

Florence Foster Jenkins, a wealthy American socialite with an absolutely awful singing voice, was a deluded soul who regarded herself as an undiscovered operatic talent. This delightful biopic hits just the right note (if you will). Jenkins was a harmlessly foolish person with no self-awareness whatsoever, but she was also rather heroic in a very odd way. We follow Jenkins (Meryl Streep) as she realises her dream of packing out Carnegie Hall. Her complicated yet fundamentally sympathetic husband (Hugh Grant) does everything he can to protect his wife from ridicule. It’s a sweet film, an affectionate piece of work somewhat reminiscent of Tim Burton’s Ed Wood. A sincere, charming, halfironic celebration of a talentless idealist.

Streep and Grant in Florence Foster Jenkins.