Why Is Everyone Talking About This Harrowing 1984 Movie?

No, it’s not a biopic for Meta’s newest app… Threads is a nuclear drama branded so terrifying it is rarely aired on television. But last night, the BBC aired it – and viewers were horrified. Here’s why.

What Is Threads About?

Threads (1984) is a nuclear apocalypse film set in Sheffield, addressing the Cold War preoccupation: what if the US and USSR actually go to war? What impact will nuclear war have on the rest of us?

We centre on young lovers Ruth (Karen Meagher) and Jimmy (Reece Dinsdale) who decide to get married after Ruth falls pregnant unexpectedly. But their quiet lives are soon disrupted after a nuclear attack on a NATO base 20 miles from Sheffield – targeted as a British industrial centre. The city falls into chaos, and Ruth and Jimmy are torn apart as the fallout ensues, leaving Ruth to grapple to survive alone in the wasteland that remains.

Watch the trailer below for a sense of the action.

Created with a £400,000 budget by the BBC, Threads first aired on BBC Two on 23 September 1984 at 9.30pm. It has aired sporadically in its 40-year history, usually to mark other nuclear anniversaries. But it was aired once more last night on BBC Four to mark the film’s 40th anniversary – and it’s still as terrifying as ever. Why? Because the film traces the medical, economic, social and environmental consequences of nuclear war, filtered through the eyes of civilians. That is, it brings nuclear war down to the granular, human experience.

Being the first film to depict a nuclear winter (the hypothetical global cooling that will occur if nuclear war happens), Threads is one of the only films to represent the full horror nuclear war would wreak on regular towns and cities if it were to break out. As screenwriter Barry Hines explained, ‘Our intention in making Threads was to step aside from the politics and – I hope convincingly – show the actual effects on either side should our best endeavours to prevent nuclear war fail.’

Where Was It Filmed?

Threads was filmed in Sheffield in the early 1980s, with hundreds of locals hired as extras. Back then, the steel city was a nuclear free zone, meaning, despite all of its factories and industry, the council agreed not to manufacture, acquire, test or possess nuclear weapons – so the council was also sympathetic to filming there. As a major industrial hub, Sheffield was also an apt choice – the USSR could well have decided to strike such a city if war broke out.

Scenes were filmed in and around the city, including at The Moor, a shopping district in the city centre. When Ruth escapes to the Buxton countryside, we’re looking at the Peak District – Curbar Edge to be precise. During filming, the weather was too mild to pass as nuclear winter, so fake snow was spread across the rocks and heather and light filters were installed on the cameras.

Where Can I Watch Threads In The UK?

Threads is available to stream for free in the UK on BBC iPlayer. bbc.co.uk

Interestingly, Threads is being remastered in 4k UHD, to be released in January 2025. It will be accompanied by a documentary featuring interviews with extras from the original film.