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In November 1966 a television play prompted public outrage over the issue of homelessness and the rights of mothers to keep their children – and made the name of Ken Loach. Half a century on from Cathy Come ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ and the director is still railing against injustice on the screen, with new film I, Daniel Blake offering a vision of Britain that is just as brutal as the one of 1966.

The protagonist is a Newcastle carpenter who, having been told by his doctor that he is medically unfit for work, struggles to secure benefits amid the labyrinthine bureaucracy of the welfare system. Dave Johns, best known as a Geordie stand-up comic, plays Daniel and Hayley Squires is Katie, a single mum who – having been forced to move from London – is similarly struggling on benefits.

The film won the Palme D’Or, the top prize at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.