At the Baftas on Sunday, a small-scale movie was up for three nominations: outstanding British film, best adapted screenplay, and best supporting actress for Carey Mulligan. In the end, The Ballad of Wallis Island won none of those. Nevertheless, the film is a delight. The plot’s premise does rather stretch credibility – but, hey, it’s fiction – in that the story centres on a widower, Charles Heath (played by Tim Key; he’s centre in the photo on the home page), who won the lottery and used the proceeds to go around the world with his wife, Marie. They then won it again. The travel bug having been duly assuaged, this time they used the funds to acquire the aforesaid island off the Welsh coast. As the film begins, it is approaching the fifth anniversary of Marie’s death.
The couple’s favourite band were McGwyer Mortimer, an indie folk group who have since split up. Charles has plans to alter that, if temporarily. He offers Herb McGwyer (played by Tom Basden, who co-wrote the screenplay with Key) £500,000 to play a private gig on his island. Pretty much his first act after Herb has fallen into the sea from the boat bringing him ashore is to present him with the money: in cash, in a suitcase. They walk around the island and Charles shows Herb where the concert will take place. Herb is flabbergasted; the setting is too small. “You said there would be a hundred people,” he says. “No, I didn’t,” says Charles. “I said there would be less than a hundred.” In fact he has in mind there will be an audience of just one: himself. (In a later aside he says one of the things he didn’t like about going to gigs was all the people all over the place.)
Herb is then in for another shock: the arrival of Nell Mortimer (played by Mulligan), his former lover and bandmate whom he hasn’t seen for nearly a decade. Even worse, she’s accompanied by her husband. Despite Charles’s almost ceaseless bonhomie, the characters rub along rather uncomfortably, initially when Nell realises she has been offered less money than Herb and then when Herb tells her that he still loves her. “I miss our music,” she tells him. “Not us.” Also, she is pregnant. She realises she cannot go through with this and Charles arranges for a boat to take her off the island. Herb is distraught. Charles is downcast. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I didn’t mean to do whatever it is I’ve done.”
The next day he rushes into the sea fully clothed because he thinks Herb is trying to drown himself. Herb ends up saving Charles. Having seen a tribute Charles has written in memory of Marie, Herb agrees to play a solo gig for his benefactor. The audience in fact consists of two people – Charles and Amanda (Sian Clifford), the island’s sole shopkeeper. Herb plays on until late, dedicating the final song to Marie.
He leaves the island the next day and the film ends on an uplifting note. Herb has not only left the island, he has left behind his £500,000 along with a guitar he has signed for Charles. Then Amanda turns up for a game of tennis with Charles. And Herb has recorded a new song: The Ballad of Wallis Island. All considered the film may be a little twee for some tastes but its feel-good factor is almost tangible.