What To Watch W/C Monday 22nd June: Celebrating The Windrush Generation

From Small Axe to Sitting in Limbo, explore the stories, resilience and legacy of the Windrush generation on screen.

For Windrush Day, we’re shining a spotlight on a selection of essential films, dramas and documentaries that explore the journeys, struggles, triumphs and lasting cultural impact of the Windrush generation.

From landmark stories of migration and belonging to powerful reflections on race, identity and resistance, we celebrate the Caribbean communities whose contributions have helped shape modern Britain. Whether you’re revisiting a classic or discovering a story for the first time, TBB’s What To Watch list offers a meaningful way to honour the legacy of Windrush.

Babylon – Stream Now | Apple TV

Follows a young reggae DJ of the Ital Lion sound system in Thatcher-era South London as he pursues his musical ambitions while also battling fiercely against the racism and xenophobia of employers, neighbours, police, and the National Front.

Cast includes Brinsley Forde, Karl Howman, Trevor Laird, Brian Bovell, David N. Haynes, Victor Romero Evans, Archie Pool, T-Bone Wilson, Mark Monero and more.

Three Little Birds – Streaming Now | ITVX & Apple TV

Set in 1957 during the post-Windrush era, follows three Jamaican women, Leah, Chantrelle, and Hosanna, who leave Clarendon for a new life in Britain. Drawn by family ties and hope for opportunity, they soon confront the realities of migration, from cultural adjustment to harsh weather, as they navigate identity, resilience, and the challenges of building a future in “the mother country.”

Cast includes Yazmin Belo, Rochelle Neil, Saffron Coomber, Lenny Henry, Javone Prince, Shvorne Marks, Leemore Marrett Jr, Bobby Gordon, Gamba Cole and more.

Small Island – Streaming Now | BBC iPlayer

Follows the interwoven lives of four individuals in post-World War II London: Hortense and Gilbert, two Jamaican immigrants seeking a better life, and Queenie and Bernard, an English couple whose fates become entangled with them

Cast includes Naomie Harris and Ashley Walters, David Oyelowo, Hugh Quarshie, Shaun Parkes, Nikki Amuka-Bird and more.

Reggae In A Babylon – Streaming Now | Netflix & Prime

Documentary filmmaker Wolfgang Büld turns his cameras on the Reggae music movement that blossomed in England in the 1970s, a thriving scene born of the union between Jamaican music and spirituality and the rebellious spirit of …

The Evolution Of Black British Music – Streaming Now | Netflix

From Jungle and grime to Garage, this documentary series explore the incredible evolution and global cultural impact of Black British music genres.

Burning An Illusion – Streaming Now | BFI Player

A young British-born Black woman searches for security in her life and hopes to achieve it through marriage; however, the false arrest and merciless beating of her boyfriend by the police forces a turning point in both their lives.

Small Axe – Streaming Now | Prime & BBC iPlayer

An anthology film series, created and directed by Steve McQueen. The anthology consists of five films that tell distinct stories about the lives of West Indian immigrants in London from the 1960s to the 1980s.

Cast includes John Boyega, Letitia Wright, Micheal Ward, Malachi Kirby, Kedar Williams-Stirling and more.

Windrush: Conflict, Controversy and Culture – Streaming Now | BBC iPlayer

Explores the history, struggles, and massive cultural contributions of the pioneering Caribbean immigrants who arrived in Britain starting in 1948 to help rebuild the postwar UK.

Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle – Streaming Now | BBC iPlayer & Sky

Monologues that reveal the hopes, desires, achievements, shattered dreams and broken promises of a single fictionalised family over four generations.

Cast includes Lenny Henry, Clifford Samuel, Gamba Cole, Elliot Barnes-Worrell, Jonathan Jules, Vinette Robinson, Danielle Vitalis, Anzor Alem and more.

Windrush: Portraits of a Generation – Streaming Now | BBC iPlayer

Marking the 75th anniversary of the arrival of HMT Empire Windrush to British shores in 1948, this documentary from 2023 follows a remarkable project spearheaded by the King, who commissioned ten leading artists from Britain and abroad to create portraits of ten pioneering members of the Windrush Generation.

The completed portraits will become part of the Royal Collection and stand as a lasting memorial to all the men, women and children who came to Britain from the Caribbean and gave so much of themselves to rebuild a nation devasted by war.
Featuring first-person testimony from the Windrush sitters, many of whom are in their 90s, as they speak frankly about their experiences of arriving in Britain, making lives for themselves and the overwhelming contribution they have made to their communities and the nation as a whole.

Sitting in Limbo – Streaming Now | BBC iPlayer

A shocking drama inspired by the Windrush scandal. After 50 years in the UK, Anthony Bryan is wrongfully detained by the Home Office and threatened with deportation.

Cast includes Michael Workéyè, Patrick Robinson, Suzanne Packer, Nadine Marshall, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Florisa Kamara, Elliot Edusah, C J Beckford and more.

Coming to England – Streaming Now | BBC iPlayer

A story of a Windrush generation girl who came to Britain in 1960 from the Caribbean. Adapted from the book Coming to England, which was written for children everywhere.

Created by Floella Benjamin.