#bfi screening

Reece Shearsmith on Instagram 15 Jan 2026

Man, the shaved head/buzzcut makes Joe look... I don't know, tough and kind of cocky, and that's not my type at all, but I'm so here for it.

Of course, when he talks/smiles, his sweet old self still comes through:

(Picture via Twitter.)

A friend of this blog/on-the-ground correspondent was actually able to attend today's screening, and has shared some interesting observations about the event and particularly about Anna, who was in attendance and seated very close to them. My correspondent has asked to remain anonymous, but these were their observations:

- Michael was very charming and self-deprecating throughout the Q&A. (Note from me: Not at all surprising, and one of the reasons I love him.) - The show itself was incredibly intense and had a lot of deeply heavy moments in the first episode. CW for suicide, so folks who may have that as a trigger are advised to exercise a lot of caution. - One of the characters in the show is named Anna and is tall, blonde, and slim and written as a migrant outcast in the town. AL does not play this role, but just the fact that it exists in a show Michael directed is...a choice.

Bringing us to our correspondent's observations about Anna specifically:

- In the theatre before the screening started, correspondent reports that Michael was talking to everyone but Anna/seemed to be talking around her. Quote from correspondent: "They hardly interacted. If I didn't know of her [already], I wouldn't have known they were together at all." - AL was chill, but looked bored throughout the screening. This was corroborated by a photo that was sent to me of Anna sitting next to Georgia (who was also in attendance) and looking very detached/bored with what was happening. - Correspondent reports that they somehow missed Georgia entirely/did not see her there at all, suggesting that Georgia was keeping a low profile. - Final observation from correspondent: Michael and Anna did not leave the event together. Michael exited through a side door and left AL behind in the main room.

While I will not say that a definite conclusion can be drawn from these observations, I do think it is interesting that at least some of what we've gleaned from photos and social media seems to correlate to what can be seen in person. I also find it interesting that AL seemingly has an avatar of herself in this show who is written as an outcast, and I wonder if this also has a correlation to real life, in more ways than one.