Colin (Tom Courtenay) is a defiant teenager who rebels against the system, refusing to follow his dying father into a factory job, railing against the capitalist bosses and preferring to make a living from petty thieving. Sent to borstal, Colin discovers his talent for cross-country running. The borstal governor (Michael Redgrave) offers him the chance to redeem himself in a race against a local public school, and tensions build as the day approaches…

Following the huge success of Karel Reisz's Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, Alan Sillitoe adapted another of his own works for the screen.  Newcomer Tom Courtenay is compelling as the sullen, disillusioned delinquent in this British New Wave classic, a passionate, explosive tale of rebellion.

Like Reisz's film, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner was originally released on UK DVD in 2003 by the BFI and has also been announced for a re-release by them for 23rd March 2009 on DVD (£17.99) and Blu-ray (£22.99). Both discs feature new, high-definition transfers and the following extras:

• Commentary by film historian Robert Murphy, with lead actor Tom Courtenay and writer Alan Sillitoe;
• Video essay by cinematographer Walter Lassally;
• Momma Don't Allow (1956), Tony Richardson's Free Cinema documentary shot by Walter Lassally;
• Illustrated booklet including essays and biographies.