Interview With "The Choral" Star Ralph Fiennes & Director Nicholas Hytner

The Next Best Picture Podcast

Tv & Film

4.2 • 542 Ratings

🗓️ 25 December 2025

⏱️ 13 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

"The Choral" is a British historical drama film co-produced and directed by Nicholas Hytner and written by Alan Bennett. Set in 1916, during World War I, in the fictional town of Ramsden, Yorkshire, the film follows the members of the local choral society, which recruits a group of teenage boys and girls for a performance of Edward Elgar's "The Dream of Gerontius," a work chosen because a German did not write it. It stars Ralph Fiennes, Roger Allam, Mark Addy, Alun Armstrong, Robert Emms, and Simon Russell Beale. The film had its world premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, where it received positive reviews for its feel-good story and performances. Hytner and Fiennes were both kind enough to spend some time speaking with us about their work and experiences making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from Sony Pictures Classics. Thank you, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You are listening to the Next Best Picture podcast, and this is Dingell Howitt's interview with
0:04.3	the star of the choral, Ray Fines, and the director, Nicholas Heidner.
0:08.5	England. We're fodder for the mill, and we'll be fodder for the front.
0:13.2	All right, boys, ready?
0:17.6	Joining up. I feel it's my patriotic duty.
0:21.0	We'll need a new chorus, master.
0:23.8	I hope he puts the wind up the Germans more than he ever did the Sopranos.
0:28.6	Dr. Guthrie.
0:29.6	What?
0:30.6	He's been working in Germany.
0:32.9	Treachery.
0:33.6	He's an atheist.
0:35.0	There are atheists now.
0:36.8	There's one in Bradford.
0:39.2	I heard his Mozart Requiem.
0:42.4	So did I.
0:44.4	It was wonderful.
0:46.2	I'd like to hear the choral.
0:48.4	Or hobbed for blutlanden.
0:52.0	For God's sake, man.
0:53.7	Renn in the bloody German.
0:56.8	Well, gentlemen, thank you so much for your time today.
	...

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