Rupert Russell

Born to a rich landowner in the waning days of the Victorian era, Ursula Brangwen grows into a beautiful young woman full of imagination and ambition. The free-spirited Ursula begins to feel trapped by her prim surroundings, but her life changes when she has an erotic experience with Winifred, a bisexual teacher. From then on, Ursula puts all of her passion and creativity into the pursuit of sexual fulfillment. But her insatiable quest becomes a source of anguish.

Moving with astonishing assurance through time and space, Russell recreates his life in a series of unconventional interconnected episodes – his thirties childhood in Southampton; his first sexual experience (watching Disney’s Pinocchio); his schooldays at the Nautical College, Pangbourne; early careers in the Merchant Marine and the Royal Air Force; dancing days at the Shepherds Bush Ballet Club; and of course his career as a filmmaker, beginning with an extraordinary interview with Huw Weldon for a job on Monitor.

In his hometown of Southampton, Ken Russell takes his young son and his aunts out to dinner, but the new traffic restrictions mean he can't get near the place. Traffic signs force him onto a sightseeing tour of town, then the ferry port looms ...