Synopsis
This is the true story of the relationship between writer, Alan Bennett, and the singular Miss Mary Shepherd, an elderly woman of uncertain origins, who takes up residence in a London street where many famous names live. She is a well-known ‘character’ around Camden Town, sometimes mocked and persecuted by passers-by as she lives in a decrepit, hand-painted yellow van crammed with old shopping bags and bits of carpet. After systematically outstaying her welcome outside every other house in the street, Miss Shepherd ‘temporarily’ parks in Bennett’s driveway and proceeds to live there for 15 years. Their unique story is funny, poignant and life-affirming. The Lady in the Van is her story as seen through Alan Bennett’s eyes.