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
The Van (1977 film) serves as the opening title theme song, despite the glaring discrepancy of Bobby's van being a Dodge rather than a Chevrolet. Five of the Johns' recordings that appear ("Chevy Van", "Early Morning Love", "Jenny", "Rag Doll" and "Hang My Head and Moan") were originally recorded in 1973, for the GRC album "Sammy Johns" and appear in their 1975 remix versions from the second edition of that album. Five more songs ("Country Lady", "You're So Sweet", "Peas in a Pod", "Bless My Soul" and "Hey, Mr. Dreamer"), apparently dating from recording sessions for a follow-up GRC album, were used for both