Philomena Philomena is the true story of one mother’s search for her lost son. Falling pregnant as a teenager in Ireland in 1952, Philomena was sent to the convent of Roscrea to be looked after as a “fallen woman”. When her baby was only a toddler, he was taken away by the nuns for adoption in America. Philomena spent the next fifty years searching for him in vain. Then she met Martin Sixsmith, a world-w…
98 min
2013
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion
‪Abortion: Ireland's Guilty Secret‬? Abortion is against the law in Northern Ireland, unlike the rest of the UK, where it has been legal for nearly 50 years. In the Republic of Ireland, the right-to-life of unborn children is enshrined in the constitution. But these laws don't stop Irish women having abortions. In this film, reporter Alys Harte shares her investigation into the abortion issue and how it divides the young people of I…
Documentary 55 min
2015
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion
Women's Voices: India This is the story of Bhakti who, after discovering she was pregnant decided to have an abortion, just like millions of other women around the world. Bhakti, who lives in India, shares her experience of why she decided to have an abortion, what her experience was like, and why access to safe abortion is so important for women in India. “I had mixed feelings. I was sad because the pregnancy ended…
Report 3 min
2014
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion
Women's Voices: France This is the story of Juliette who, just like millions of other women around the world, decided to have an abortion following an unintended pregnancy. Juliette, who lives in France, describes the challenges she faced in trying to find accurate and unbiased information about abortion, and she shares her thoughts on the role of men in the abortion process. “I decided to look for the official infor…
Report 3 min
2014
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion
‪Women's Voices: Cameroon‬ This is the story of Michelle who had an abortion in relative secrecy in Cameroon, a country that criminalizes abortion under most circumstances. Michelle shares her feelings and experience of having an abortion without the support of her family, and her thoughts on how the criminal law should be changed to guarantee women access to safe abortion services. “I was sad, extremely sad, at having t…
Report 3 min
2014
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion
Vera Drake Vera Drake is a selfless woman who is completely devoted to, and loved by, her working class family. She spends her days doting on them and caring for her sick neighbor and elderly mother. However, she also secretly visits women and helps them induce miscarriages for unwanted pregnancies. While the practice itself was illegal in 1950s England, Vera sees herself as simply helping women in need, an…
Film 125 min
2004
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion
Like a ship in the night “200 women from Ireland, every single week, go to England for abortions. Yet nobody ever talks about it.”

Abortion is illegal in Ireland, North and South, potentially punishable by life imprisonment. And yet thousands of Irish women a year travel to England for abortions. They make this journey in secret and return in silence, some of them never telling a soul. LIKE A SHIP IN THE NIGHT follow…
Documentary 30 min
2006
USA Great Britain Ireland

Topic: Abortion
Up the Junction The English director Ken Loach is a true master and always expresses his political and social concerns cinematically. In this semi-documentary early work he deals, among other things, with the topic of abortion. Loach made Up the Junction for the BBC series "Wednesday Play” in 1965. When it was first broadcast, it had nearly ten million viewers and provoked heated debates. Not only its portrayal …
Film 72 min
1965
Great Britain

Topic: Abortion