Saving Grace

Saving Grace is a 2000 British comedy film, directed by Nigel Cole, starring Brenda Blethyn and Craig Ferguson. The screenplay was written by Ferguson and Mark Crowdy. Set in Cornwall, the film tells the story of a middle aged widow whose irresponsible husband left her in an enormous debt, forcing her to grow cannabis in her greenhouse along with her gardener Matthew to avoid losing her house. It was co-produced by Fine Line Features, Homerun Productions, Portman Entertainment, Sky Pictures, and Wave Pictures and filmed in London and the villages of Boscastle and Port Isaac in Cornwall. Distributed by 20th Century Fox in major territories, the film premiered at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival, where it won Cole the Audience Award for World Cinema.

Critical reaction to Saving Grace was generally positive and it received favourable commercial notice for an independent British comedy film, eventually grossing $26,330,482 worldwide, following its theatrical release in the United States. The film received awards from the Norwegian International Film Festival and the Munich Film Festival, also receiving a BAFTA Award nomination for Crowdy, and ALFS Award, Golden Globe and Satellite Award nominations for Blethyn and her performance.[2] Following Saving Grace's release, two television film prequels to the film were produced along with a highly successful ITV spin off series called Doc Martin, starring Martin Clunes in his role as Dr. Martin Ellingham in a name switch after appearing in the film as Bamford