Jack and Sarah stars Richard E. Grant as Jack, a successful London lawyer whose perfect wife (Imogen Stubbs) dies in childbirth, leaving him to cope alone with newborn baby Sarah. Unable to stay home with her, after a succession of unsuitable applicants he hires Amy (Samantha Mathis), a young American working as a waitress, to babysit. He is also helped by William (Ian McKellen), an alcoholic derelict who cleans himself up and takes on the role of butler. Also helping - and occasionally hindering - are his mother and mother-in-law (Judi Dench and Eileen Atkins).
Although Amy adores and is adored by the baby, she has absolutely no professional experience in looking after children, and Jack's overprotective attitude towards his daughter causes repeated spells of friction between them. The two are clearly attracted to each other and almost everyone else actively encourages their relationship but, having been badly burned by fate, Jack is reluctant to commit himself again. His boss (Cherie Lunghi) is keen to seduce him but has a distinct aversion to children. Eventually their shared devotion to Sarah brings Jack and Amy closer together...
"Sparky playing, a generally sharp script and bright packaging add up to a neat little winner," wrote Variety, which placed the film on a similar cinematic plane to the blockbuster Four Weddings and a Funeral. "Grant is terrific as the obsessive self-centred yuppie. Other casting is flawless down the line, from Dench's sharp-tongued mum through Atkins' hang-dog mother-in-law to Ian McKellen's almost Gielgudian gentleman tramp."
Jack and Sarah is a Film programme that first aired in 1995 and has been classified a 15 certificate.
