126 | June• 2019
RD RECOMMENDS
Red Joan (Drama, History, Bio)
J
udi Dench plays Joan Stanley
(inspired by the life of Melita
Norwood), an octogenarian whose
quiet world is shattered when charged
with 27 breaches of the British Official
Secrets Act by M15. Shown through
interrogation flashbacks of the naive
20-year-old Norwood (Sophie
Cookson), accusations of fraternising
with communists and a love affair with
a comrade bring steadfast denials. But
there are files tracking Stanley since
1928 at Cambridge University. Is she the
KGB’s longest serving British spy or an
innocent pawn in a dangerous game?Breaking Habits
(Documentary, DVD)C
hristine Meeusen was once a
married corporate executive,
a ‘respectable mother’ living
the American dream. So, how did
she become a cannabis farming
activist nun? Truth is stranger than
fiction. Sister Kate, as she’s now
known, was abandoned by her
husband and left penniless with
young children to care for. The new
path she forged led to a different
life. Sisters of the Valley founder,
she created a medicinal-marijuana
empire, which she believes helps
cancer sufferers. Their ‘higher’
calling may make them the most
controversial sisterhood in America.