Picked up from a tweet reply by Micra (@Pimpi59) to @Chrissyinwm, which (gulp) said RIP Lee.
Here Urban Grimshaw and the Shed Crew is being staged in a small Leeds theater.
Sadly, the article also revealed that the real life Urban, Lee Kirton, died this summer.
Also mentioned, the film with #RichardArmitage (without mentioning #RichardArmitage)
A film of the book, starring Anna Friel and Fraser Kelly, was shot on the estate a few years ago, but has yet to see the light of day.
It appears that Lee’s death was drug related. Every search I performed on Google brought me to articles about drug overdose deaths in Leeds this summer related to a more potentially lethal strain of heroin, but no names mentioned.
Armitage Agonistes 
Always such a waste. 😮
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Agreed. And this was someone who had a level of support – so many don’t even have that.
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So sad to hear of Urban/Lee’s death. His story needs to be told and the UATSC film shared to focus a light upon society’s most vulnerable members–our children living in the margins–in the hope that real assistance and mentoring will be given to them to help them, as the story’s Chop had given to Urban.
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Yes, it’s very sad, but from what we know after fan reviews, et al. I wonder if the film told the real story.
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There is always more to the story after a book is published or a movie made. And there is only so much that can be conveyed in a 90 minute or so film.
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Poor guy. Sad and enraging at the same time.
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In God ‘s perfect timing. Everything will be ok. Feel sad tho Urban and the Shed Crew should have made it to Toronto International Film Festival TIFF. Who knows?
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I don’t think we’ll see a theater release – maybe some other platform. I am guessing Candida Brady is waiting for her current distribution contract to end so she can shop it elsewhere.
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I agree — I’ve heard a lot of speculation about why the film hasn’t been distributed and this seems the most probable to me.
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So very very sad. It is even more important that this movie is released.
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Yes, it’s sad. If not for the play opening, I wonder whether any public would know of the death. As I said to Grati earlier, I think the tone the film took might make it even less relevant. But don’t get me wrong – I am longing to see it for myself.
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Of all of Richard’s projects – that’s the one I’ve wanted to see the most. Most people wonder how these children fall through the cracks. As an educator in a poor area with low-functioning children to drug addicted parents, it’s happens more often that we want to think.
But I also see children of parents who are struggling who’ve instilled in their children – you don’t have to struggle like this. You can get out and rise above it and they work hard. I see little miracles every day and it’s so worth it.
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Hi Zeesmuse, I agree with you about the little miracles. Our local Boys And Girls Club is just one of several organizations that has for over two decades helped children and families rise from their economic disadvantages. The BGC center provides study rooms with tutors and computers and printers for K-12 kids, special programs promoting striving for personal achievement and assistance such as Passport to Manhood for the boys and Delta Academy for girls interested in STEM, field trips and special topic visitor programs, a gym area for games and a great space for general events like the December Christmas parties with card making stations, and other fun activities.
And since I work at a STEM department at one of our community’s large universities, over the years we have both gone to BGC with special college pathway programs, as well as, invited them to us for free planetarium and career presentations with First Gen STEM and business majors college students as panelists. Scholarship dollars are also key in helping economically disadvantaged kids get to college–and then having First Gen and other support programs once they get to college, which our university does.
Our local YWCA also does wonderful work in helping at-risk and victimized young people break the cycles of abuse, intolerance, and injustice. There are wonderful organizations out there, they just need volunteers and monetary donations to fund their programs.
Every child deserves a chance at a better life and a more hopeful future.
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Here in Georgia, we have this BEAUTIFUL thing called the Hope Scholarship. Every child who maintains a B average gets free tuition to any public state college. It’s a great help to many. Spawn got lazy his last semester in HS and missed it by .02 points. We’re hoping by the end of this year, his College GPA will be high enough to qualify for it. *crossed fingers*
I think the thing that bothers me the most is when a child comes to school, smelling like reefer. Parents don’t get it, their child can’t focus or concentrate. I’m adding sight-word songs to my youngers music repertoire. They think it’s a game, I KNOW it’s learning.
We have a lot of programs here – between Early Learning College, among other things. Savannah can boast of 2 nationally acclaimed high schools – Woodville-Thomkins HS and the Savannah High School of the Performing Arts. There are also several magnet schools with different disciplines that children can go to. We even provide transportation, as long as the child isn’t a behavior problem. 🙂
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This is sad for so many reasons and a sad reality in Britain today more than a few years ago i fear. It’s sad as well that the film wasn’t able to have the small positive impact it could have, more because it just hasn’t been seen by enough people. I do hope not all is lost and that it will see the light of some screen eventually as the story remains relevant more than ever. I don’t think more so in hindsight even that an ending with a small message of hope is wrong. And people do need reminding of these human stories more than ever (as the very recent Broken with Sean Bean and I Daniel Blake proved)
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I have literally just finished the book and was so engrossed in it, it shard to believe places like this exist and children/young adults have this sort of childhood. But much like others I went onto google and was pleased to see a film made and production. But then very saddened to learn of Lee, more so if it was drug related. All those children tried but hadn’t the support/ families/ culture – I am not sure what the right wording is. It is very sad.
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