Most people don't like to plan too far ahead when they're on holiday - drawing up a strict schedule of places to visit and things to do takes the fun and spontaneity out of experiencing life as it unfolds, reminding us of the meetings and appointments which bind our lives in the workplace. In Nuts in May, Keith Pratt (Roger Sloman) takes an altogether different view on how to run a holiday, keeping to a strict itinerary with his wife Candice Marie (Alison Steadman) as they pitch up their tent in Dorset and explore the surrounding quarries, coves and castles. Unfortunately, Keith forgot to factor in one important thing before setting off - other people - and before long his idealised holiday becomes increasingly tattered thanks to his complete inability to interact with other members of the human race in a normal fashion. Nuts in May is one of Mike Leigh's earliest films, but already his keen observation on human foibles and the comedy of manners is abundantly clear. Keith is undoubtedly one of the most loathsome yet hilarious characters in the history of comedy - a kind of template for the Alan Partridges and David Brents which were to come decades later - and his inexorable slide towards a nervous breakdown is something to behold.
