The Spongers
| The Spongers | |
|---|---|
Title card
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| Directed by | Roland Joffé |
| Produced by | Tony Garnett |
| Written by | Jim Allen |
| Starring |
Christine Hargreaves Bernard Hill Peter Kerrigan Paula Mcdonagh |
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Running time
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90 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Spongers is a 1978 television play by Jim Allen which was directed by Roland Joffé and produced by Tony Garnett. First broadcast on 24 January 1978 on BBC 1, it was originally screened as part of the Play for Today series
Set against the backdrop of Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II, the play depicts a single mother's struggles as welfare cuts affect the poor and disabled. The derogatory term 'spongers' is used by British tabloid press to describe people who are dependent on welfare support, however the play presents the case of a family who really need the help of welfare support. The title sequence shows the title of the play, 'The Spongers', superimposed over a picture of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, denoting them as 'the real spongers' as Royal finances are paid by British taxpayers. For example, the Queen's official expenditure increased by £200,000 from £32.1m in 2010-11 to £32.3m in 2011-12.
Pauline (Christine Hargreaves), a recently separated single mother-of-four, receives a visit from a bailiff regarding her rent arrears. She is given 15 days to address the issue, yet the bailiff values Pauline's furniture and possessions. This upsets Pauline's daughter, Paula, who has Down's syndrome, and she is comforted by her Auntie Gertie. Meanwhile nearby, Councillor Conway (Bernard Atha) watches preparations for Jubilee celebrations.
Community action worker Sullivan (Bernard Hill) drives Pauline and Paula past the preparations for the Jubilee on the way to a dedicated home for special needs children. Paula expresses excitement about the Jubilee celebrations. As Pauline settles back into her care home, a meeting of the Labour-controlled council is being run. Conway is confronted over public expenditure cuts.
The following day, Pauline tries to sort out her arrears problems at the DHSS, but is refused exceptional needs payments because of her previous grants, electricity arrears, and because she spent her rent allowance on food. The staff at the DHSS suggest she should have used a food coupon, however Pauline says she would have felt embarrassed to use the coupon in the shops as she feared others might think she doesn't spend money on the children when in fact she does - it's just that there is little money to spare. Later, Pauline's small donation to a Jubilee collection angers her cousin Jackie (Angela Catherall) because of the system's unfair treatment of Pauline.
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