Telling the story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain (1955), the film won critical acclaim, and aided the careers of two of its leading actors, Miranda Richardson and Rupert Everett.

The story of Ellis has resonance in Britain because it provided part of the background to the extended national debates that led to the progressive abolition of capital punishment from 1965.

A former nude model and prostitute, Ruth is manageress of a drinking club in London that has racing drivers as its main clients.

In the club, she meets David, an immature, young man from a well-off family who wants to succeed in motor racing but suffers from lack of money and overuse of alcohol.

Mike Newell won Award of the Youth at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival for Dance with a Stranger.