Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story (12A)

In 1960, a young Irish woman named Edna O’Brien wrote a sexually frank debut novel, The Country Girls. She became a literary sensation and electrifying speaker, delivering provocative interviews. Her success enraged her writer husband and made her a pariah in her native Ireland, where her books were banned and burned. She made a new home in London, where she conducted love affairs, hosted star-studded parties, and made and lost a fortune. This documentary is a lyrical blend of archival footage; interviews with her sons, academics and admirers; and readings from her work and diaries by Jessie Buckley; and most movingly, collaboration from Edna who, even in her 93rd year, talks honestly and boldly about her extraordinary life.