British Council Logo UK Films Database
Project Detail

Keep the Aspidistra Flying

Synopsis

Grant and Bonham-Carter star as a quirky 1930's couple with very modern ideas in an off-beat tale of love, poetry and garden plants. The romantic comedy, shot entirely on location around London, centres around the unconventional relationship between an eccentric budding poet and his long-suffering girlfriend. While Comstock strives to embrace poverty and his 'art', Rosemary works furiously (against all odds) to keep her career and their relationship on the rails. Their odd, but touching, romance revolves around Comstock's bizarre passion to escape that dreaded symbol of middle-class 'respectability' - the aspidistra.

Details

Year
1998
Type of project
Features
Running time
101 mins
Format
35mm Kodak
Director
Robert Bierman
Producer
John Wolstenholme, Robert Bierman
Director of Photography
Giles Nuttgens
Principal cast
Richard E. Grant, Helena Bonham-Carter
Executive Screen Writer
Alan Plater

Categories

Fiction

Production Status

Complete

Production Company

Aspidistra Productions Ltd c/o Sargent Disc Ltd Pinewood Studios Pinewood, Iver, Bucks SL0 0NH Tel: 01753 630 300 Fax: 01753 655 881

Sales Company

Overseas Filmgroup Inc Sunset Boulevard Los Angeles Tel: 310 855 1199 Fax: 310 855 0956

Page updates

This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.

Suggest amendments

See also

You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

A small, cute, orange blob character is sat in a simple flat pink environment, looking at the viewer. Above them is a text box, floating Poob

Director: AJ Jefferies

Year: 2026

POOB is ready to LEARN and have FUN! An exploration into control, detachment and agency in an abusive relationship.

Comedy
Comic book styling, hands reaching for a diamond through lasers Unseen Diplomacy 2

Director: Katie Goode, John Campbell

Year: 2026

You're a Secret Agent during a dangerous time, Evil-doers are plotting to destroy the world. Complete missions, manage your agents & use Intel to narrow down the plot and save the Earth. Play a real-life VR obstacle course using every inch of your room - you will run, roll, sneak & hack to victory!

Action Adventure Woman Director
Two girls in maroon school uniform sit against mustard yellow lockers doing homework and sharing an orange. Lady Macbeth Was Never a Girl

Director: Francesca McBride

Year: 2026

In the grey rhythms of a 1990s British secondary school, a student begins to sense a discomfort that has no name, just a feeling that the role they’re playing doesn’t quite fit. Through a missing pair of joggers, an unexpected line from Macbeth, and the quiet rituals of uniforms, registers, and school corridors, this film traces the first flickers of identity forming - not through revelation, but recognition.

Drama History LGBTQIA+ Scottish Woman Director