Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

MAX HARWOOD as Jamie. Everybody's Talking About Jamie. © Warp Films

Out on Amazon Prime Video 17 September

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is a vibrant, fun-filled, biographical musical film with Sheffield at its heart, adapted from the award-winning hit West-End musical about Jamie New, a teenager with a dream of a life on stage.

Set in Sheffield, and featuring a brilliant ensemble cast, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie follows 16-year old Jamie (newcomer Max Harwood), a misfit who isn’t quite sure what his future holds. Supported by his loving mum, and close-knit group of friends, Jamie overcomes prejudice and intolerance to become a sensation.

Background

The idea, which is a true story, came from a 2011 television documentary called Jamie: Drag Queen at Sixteen, directed by Jenny Popplewell, about a boy named Jamie Campbell in a small ex-mining town in England building up the courage to tell his classmates that he wants to be a drag queen—and that he plans to wear a dress to his prom.

The story captured the attention of writers Tom MacRae and Dan Gillespie Sells, who teamed up with Jonathan Butterell to create a stage musical for The Crucible Theatre in Sheffield – and the rest is history.

The new feature film adaptation of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is directed by Jonathan Butterell in his directorial debut and produced by Sheffield’s Warp Films.

Watch the trailer

Filming locations

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie filmed in Sheffield, with locations support from Screen Yorkshire’s Film Office. Filming locations include:

Trafalgar Warehouse (New York club exterior), Crookes Social Club (Jamie’s debut drag performance), Abbeydale Picture House (New York nightclub), Corporation Nightclub (flashback scenes), Deerlands Avenue, Parson Cross (street party scene), Gill Stores, Worral News and Atkinson’s Department Store.

The Sheffield community were invited to appear in the film’s final scene, in which Jamie and Pritti ride in a limo in a one-car parade through a massive street party. 2,500 Jamie fans joined 500 extras in a celebratory parade scene, to enjoy the music, street entertainers, and watch some of the filming.

It was crazy. I nearly pulled the plug on it a month before because it was such a big undertaking. We had one day to do it, and it’s Sheffield—we don’t have Hollywood weather. It just goes to show how the people of Sheffield took Jamie into their hearts. They came dressed up looking fabulous and just went for it.

Mark Herbert - Producer (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie)

Yorkshire is home. Like its people, Yorkshire is robust, straightforward, rugged, diverse, and downright bloody gorgeous. Everyone should film here.

Jonathan Butterell – Director (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie)

Synopsis and cast

While his classmates plan their livelihoods after graduation, Jamie contemplates revealing his secret career ambition as a fierce and proud drag queen. His best friend Pritti (Lauren Patel) and his loving mum (Sarah Lancashire) shower him with endless support while local drag legend Miss Loco Chanelle (Richard E. Grant) mentors him toward his debut stage performance. But it’s not all rainbows for Jamie as his unsupportive dad (Ralph Ineson), an uninspired career advisor (Sharon Horgan), and some ignorant school kids attempt to rain on his sensational aspirations. In rousing and colourful musical numbers, Jamie and his community inspire one another to be more accepting, and to see the value in facing adversity and stepping out of the darkness into the spotlight.

Watch it on Amazon Prime Video from Friday 17th September 2021.