June Brown: Respect Your Elders

Eighty-five-year-old EastEnders actress June Brown thinks the way we treat older people in this country lacks respect. She thinks they are undervalued, pushed aside and ignored. In this programme, June tries to find out what's gone wrong and what can be done about it. On her journey, she talks to elderly people about what it is like to be in the care system. She even visits her former on-screen husband John Bardon, who had a stroke five years ago and now needs 24-hour care. June's personal views come to the fore when her own family challenge her to say what she wants to happen if she ever needed care. June's first response is to dismiss the notion but, as the film progresses, she comes to a surprising decision.

June Brown (EastEnders’ Dot Cotton) became one of British TV’s oldest ever presenters when she authored this polemic.

Nominated for Best Single Programme at the 2012 Cultural Diversity Network Awards, June’s film investigates what has gone wrong in the way we treat older people, and asks what can be done about it.

Her personal views come to the fore when her family challenges her to say what she wants to happen if ever she needs full-time care. Her first response is to dismiss the notion but as the film progresses she reaches a surprising conclusion.

For BBC One’s When I’m 65 season.

Format:
Series
Genre:
Documentary
Year of production:
2012
Commissioning broadcasters:
BBC One