In the class-obsessed and religiously divided UK of the early 1920s, two determined young runners train for the 1924 Paris Olympics. Eric Liddell, a devout Christian born to Scottish missionaries in China, sees running as part of his worship of God's glory and refuses to train or compete on the Sabbath. Harold Abrahams overcomes anti-Semitism and class bias, but neglects his beloved sweetheart in his single-minded quest.

Ben Cross
as Harold Abrahams

Ian Charleson
as Eric Liddell

Cheryl Campbell
as Jennie Liddell

Alice Krige
as Sybil Gordon

Nigel Havers
as Lord Andrew Lindsay

Ian Holm
as Sam Mussabini

Nicholas Farrell
as Aubrey Montague

Daniel Gerroll
as Henry Stallard

John Gielgud
as Master of Trinity

Lindsay Anderson
as Master of Caius
CinemaSerf
The opening bars of the Oscar-winning Vangelis score coupled with the shot of the athletes running along the beach, barefoot, at St. Andrews is amongst the most iconic opening scenes from any film, but somehow the rest of this strays all too often into mediocrity thereafter. It tells the story of tw...