Outside Bet, also known as Weighed In: The Story of the Mumper, is a British comedy film directed by Sacha Bennett and starring Bob Hoskins, Jenny Agutter, Philip Davis and Adam Deacon. The film was released on 20 April 2012.
Plot
It is 1985. Thatcher is in power, Sade is on the radio, and the print workers have gone on strike. But nothing, not even a scale eight earthquake can put a dampener on a group of close friends that meet every Sunday in their regular South London pub for a pint and free flowing banter of the highest order. Set against the backdrop of a changing way of life-as Rupert Murdoch moves the printing of his newspapers from Fleet Street to Wapping-this is a tale of seven firm friends, who embark on a unique journey that eventually leads them to gamble all of their savings and redundancy money on a single race.
Cast
Bob Hoskins - Percy 'Smudge' Smith
Calum MacNab - Mark 'Bax' Baxter
Terry Stone - Johnny Gosamer
Jenny Agutter - Shirley Baxter
Philip Davis - Threads
Adam Deacon - Sam The Soleman
Vincent Regan - Jago
Mark Cooper Harris - Harry
Emily Atack - Katie
Montserrat Lombard - Becka
Terry Stone - Johnny Gossamer
Perry Benson - Sefton Wallace
Dudley Sutton - Alfie Hobnails
Linda Robson- Lil
Rita Tushingham - Martha
Ali Cook - Stevie
Lucy Drive - Erica
Rebecca Ferdinando - Cheryl
Reception
The film was not well received by critics. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes records 9 reviews with an average rating of 3.4/10. Other reviews have been more positive - Mark Kermode declared it his Film of the Week, saying he was "charmed" by the film, and also made it one of his 6 "Gems" of the year.