The Duke, set in 1961, is based on the true story of Kempton Bunton (Jim Broadbent), a 60-year old taxi driver, who stole Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London. It was the first (and remains the only) theft in the Gallery’s history. What happened next became the stuff of legend.

Kempton sent ransom notes saying that he would return the painting on condition that the government invested more in care for the elderly - he had long campaigned for pensioners to receive free television.

Only 50 years later did the full story emerge - Kempton had spun a web of lies. The only truth was that he was a good man, determined to change the world and save his marriage - how and why he used the Duke to achieve that is a wonderfully uplifting tale.

This sharp and brilliant shaggy dog tale is a perfect vehicle for Jim Broadbent’s uncontainable magnetism, and a fitting swansong for his Le Week-end director, Roger Michell.

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