The Shed Crew

The only respite from the violence the young individuals faced, much of which Hare had to leave out of his memoir due to its shocking nature, was found in the shed and later at Bernard Hare's place. Lee Kirton, or Urban, began his life in prison, where he was born. As of 2023, more than twenty-five years later, around 600 pregnant women are held in prisons in England and Wales, with some 100 babies born to women prisoners. Despite the existence of national and international legislation aimed at protecting their health and well-being, many of these women do not receive the care and support they are entitled to.

Candida Brady, the film's director, sought to shed light on this issue and chose Action for Children as the film's partner charity because the charity's work in prisons with mother and baby units is considered ground-breaking.

Production and Release

To maintain authenticity, production designer Chris Truelove aimed to use as many original locations as possible. The original shed where the runaways stayed was long gone, so he worked with Lee and Bernard to faithfully reproduce it in as much detail as possible. Casting director Michelle Smith considered hundreds of children, including casting former care home residents, in their search for the cast, most of whom were newcomers. Notably, Charlie Heaton (Stranger Things) auditioned for a different role but ended up being cast as Urban's brother, Frank. Ryan Ward from the series "Educating Yorkshire" was also part of the cast, as was Derry Girls’ Jamie-Lee O’Donnell. Richard Armitage took the role of Chop (Hare) and Anna Friel played the part of Greta (Urban’s mum). Chop’s chess playing partner Doc was played by Neil Morrissey, and Fraser Kelly made his screen debut as Urban.

Brady recalls that finding a dog to play Tyson proved to be a challenging task… having auditioned many trained but unsuitable dogs, she met Max, a rescue dog, while looking at a location.

Filming took place in Leeds in early 2014. An early version of the film was screened on November 7, 2015, at Chapel FM in Leeds, attended by Bernard Hare, Candida Brady, Richard Armitage, Fraser Kelly, and several members of the original Shed Crew, some of whom had worked on the production.

Due to the overwhelming response, the Leeds International Film Festival added additional screenings of the film on November 8, 2015, at the historic Hyde Park Picture House after the initial showing sold out.

The final version, I Am Urban received its world premiere in London on 28th September 2023 which was followed by a theatrical release in selected cinemas around the UK.

Critical Reception

Audience and critic reactions to the director’s cut of Urban and the Shed Crew were overwhelmingly positive. Viewers described it as a powerful and eye-opening film that sheds light on a social problem often overlooked. The film's gritty, sad, harrowing, and heart-warming portrayal resonated with many. The cast's performances were highly praised.

Sir Tony Hawkhead, chief executive at Action for Children, said: ‘Urban and The Shed Crew provides an incredibly powerful and gritty social commentary on the true reality of Bernard Hare’s experiences and that of a group of children in Leeds growing up through the nineties. Although the film is set over twenty years ago, its core theme of neglect and the desperate need for early action to avoid families spiraling into crisis is just as important today.'

Awards

The Director’s Cut of the film entered competition at the Newcastle Film Festival in 2018, where it won two awards: Best Actor for Richard Armitage and the People's Award for Candida Brady.

Director's Cut and Soundtrack

The original director's cut was re-edited by Anuree De Silva for Circadian Pictures in 2022. It features an original score by Alan Snelling.