The Lady in the Van The Lady in the Van The Lady in the Van is a 2015 British comedy-drama film directed by Nicholas Hytner, and starring Maggie Smith and Alex Jennings, based on the novel of the same name created by Alan Bennett. It was written by Alan Bennett, and it tells the (mostly) true story of his interactions with Mary Shepherd, an elderly woman who lived in a dilapidated van on his driveway in London for 15 years. He had previously published the story as a 1989 essay, 1990 book, 1999 stage play, and 2009 radio play on BBC Radio 4. Smith had
Back in the Saddle (film) arrested and taken away. Afterwards, Gene and Taffy join their friends at a picnic celebrating Tom's twenty-first birthday. The original working title for the film was "Song at Twilight". Margaret Tallichet was originally offered the leading lady role but her husband, director William Wyler, persuaded her to join him in Sun Valley for a winter vacation instead. The role was then offered to Jacqueline Wells, who later gained semi-stardom under the name Julie Bishop during the war years. Wells was born in Denver, Colorado in 1914 and became a silent film child actress who transitioned easily to talkies and adult