Cathy Come Home

Another example of how Ken Loach’s televisual work helped enact actual change in British society comes with Cathy Come Home. Written by Jeremy Sandford, the drama follows young lovers Cathy and Reg from their early married days through a spiral of misfortune that follows Reg's work accident, leading to eviction, separation and culminating in a hysterical Cathy having her children forcibly taken away by Social Services. 

Loach’s film created a burst of public controversy that coincidentally helped establish the homelessness charity Shelter in the public’s minds when it launched not long after transmission, thanks to 12 million people watching the initial broadcast.