The Ballad of Wallis Island (2025)

What is The Ballad Of Wallis Island About?

Herb McGwyer and Nell Mortimer were once a celebrated folk duo, but tensions drove the bandmates and former lovers apart. But when they get the opportunity to make a significant amount of money playing for a reunion gig, they can’t turn it down. They arrive for the show on a remote Welsh island, only to discover that the ‘select audience’ consists of one eccentric widower. 

Our Honest The Ballad Of Wallis Island Review

The Ballad Of Wallis Island is a big, comforting life lesson of a film, dressed up as a comedy to disguise its sincerity. It’s a very intimate movie, with a minuscule cast and very little in the way of Hollywood glamour. It also packs a decent number of laughs in, and we were pleasantly surprised by how good it was. 

It’s a low-key comedy drama which sees a folk duo reunite to play a private gig. The central trio of Tim Key, Tom Basden, and Carey Mulligan have good chemistry, and their witty bickering is lots of fun to watch. It wraps up in a satisfying way and feels almost like the movie equivalent of eating a Victoria sponge cake with your grandparents. 

What Do the Critics Think of The Ballad Of Wallis Island?

The critics were generally impressed by The Ballad Of Wallis Island. It won praise for the warmth and humour, and the cast were all well received. It currently holds a 96% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

• “This is a fish-out-of-water, odd couple, art and romance dramedy that reminds me of terrific television series such as Hamish Macbeth (1995-97) and Northern Exposure (1990-95). It is charming throughout, humorous and moving.” – Stephen Romei, The Australian. 

• “There are songs sung sweetly, insults hurled then retracted, and a balm of kindness in every frame that emerges from somewhere between Basden’s hangdog sensitivities and Key’s cherubic wit.” – Kevin Maher, The Times. 

• “Key and Basden avoid turning their film into a nostalgic pat on the back for smug millennials convinced they lived through artistically superior times — the sense of loss here is strictly personal.” – Clarisse Loughrey, The Independent.
  
  
• “Basden does excellent work as a character, in contrast, whose face does the talking: a spiky presence, all low cut T-shirts, wounded ego and rounded shoulders. It’s a perfect performance both as an actor and, when the songs come along, as a musician.” – Catherine Bray, The Guardian. 
  
  
• “We may all wish for a visit to Wallis Island when the movie ends.” – Nell Minow, Movie Mom. 

What Awards and Nominations did The Ballad Of Wallis Island Receive?

The film has picked up a respectable number of awards, mainly from festival screenings so far. As the audience grows, we’ll probably see a few more of these. It earned:

Its critical acclaim is seen in the awards it has won and been nominated for, including:

• Best Actor for Tim Key at the National Film Awards UK.
  
  
• Best Actress for Carey Mulligan at the National Film Awards UK. 
  
  
• Best Screenplay for Tim Key and Tom Basden at the Astra Midseason Movie Awards.
  
  
• Festival Favourites for James Griffiths at the SXSW Film Festival. 

Director & Cast of The Ballad Of Wallis Island

Rami Malek, Laurence Fishburne, and James Hawes are each uniquely talented. Here’s more about them.

Fun Facts About The Ballad Of Wallis Island

• The original title was One For The Money.

• The small cast and limited locations made filming relatively straightforward. They only required eighteen days of filming. 

• This movie was the ‘surprise film’ of the 2025 Glasgow Film Festival.

• The film could be considered a comedic equivalent of Stephen King’s Misery (1990). Both films feature an artist stuck in a secluded location with an obsessed fan, although Charles is a far more good-natured character than Kathy Bates’s psychotic nurse. Misery is namechecked at one point in the dialogue. 

• Tim Key and Tom Basden were the only characters in the original short film; Carey Mulligan’s Nell is a new addition to the story. 

Themes of The Ballad Of Wallis Island

There is a powerful theme of nostalgia running through The Ballad Of Wallis Island, with the music providing a major part. The music of McGwyer-Mortimer was a favourite of Charles and his wife, so listening to them play helps him come to terms with losing her. It forms a connection between him and the life he once had, giving him bittersweet reminders of their past romance. In this respect, the music is a link to his past that also soothes his grief. 

Similarly, the music gives Nell and Herb a reminder of the friendship they once shared. Playing their old songs together brings to light the decisions they regret and the opportunities they missed. It enables them to form a human connection and empathise with one another in ways that can’t always be put into words. 

How Does The Ballad Of Wallis Island Compare to James Griffiths’s Other Work?

Aside from this film, James Griffiths directed Cuban Fury (2014), and while they are both comedies, they’re very different in tone. Cuban Fury was a tongue-in-cheek crowd pleaser and felt more like one of Will Ferrell’s classic comedies than The Ballad Of Wallis Island. 

It focused on a group of working-class underdogs taking up salsa dancing, and was far sillier than this movie. It included scenes of Nick Frost and Chris O’Dowd in flowery outfits dancing, and had a lot of belly laughs. In contrast, The Ballad Of Wallis Island feels more down-to-earth and has a gentler sense of humour. 

Iconic Scenes from The Ballad Of Wallis Island

Behind-the-Scenes Trivia

• This film is a feature-length adaptation of a short film made by Tim Key, James Griffiths, and Tom Masden in 2008, titled The One And Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island. Several lines of dialogue have been lifted verbatim from the original.

• Despite being set on an island, the majority of the filming was completed along the main Welsh coastline.

• Wallis Island is fictional, but was inspired by Ramsey Island, off the coast of Pembrokeshire.
  
• The house that was used to represent Charlie’s home is located in the hometown of the director James Griffiths’s mother.

What’s the Soundtrack Like for The Ballad Of Wallis Island?

As you might expect, the soundtrack consists of several folk songs, all written and performed by Tom Basden. Carey Mulligan lends her vocals to it, and essentially, the songs are the same as in the film. It’s a relaxing, chilled-out collection, and frankly, Basden could have been a professional folk musician if he wanted. He’s as good as many seasoned folk acts we’ve heard.

Best Quotes from Andor

• “To paraphrase the Beatles, there goes the sun.” – Charles says goodbye to the sunshine.

• “Houston, we have chutney, and that is not a problem.” – Charles makes a silly joke that aptly demonstrates his eccentricity.

• “Because artists don’t whiten their teeth – because that’s the definition of being an artist.” – Herb discusses artistic integrity.

• “Rice pudding definitely won’t work.” – Herb has a hard time getting his phone dried out.

• “One day we might wake up hungover, with two-thirds of diddly-squat to our name, but we’ll always have this island and your beautiful music.” – Charles explains his love of music.

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