‘Best Little Whorehouse in Rochdale’

Ian Vernon’s latest feature film, ‘Best Little Whorehouse in Rochdale’

Ian Vernon’s latest feature film, ‘Best Little Whorehouse in Rochdale’, was the surprise hit winning the Audience Favourite Award at the prestigious Palm Beach International Film Festival in Florida.

“No one was more amazed than me.” says Ian, the multi-award winning writer/director/producer. “After it’s world premiere at the festival people were talking about how funny and entertaining it was. I didn’t expect my very Northern comedy to win in the US because of the Northern humour, and it was up against films made for hundreds of thousands more than my little film.”

The 105 minute film was made for two thousand pounds and follows the story of Joan. After the death of her husband, she needs money to pay the mortgage. Joan hits upon the idea of setting up a co-operative brothel with her two friends. A brothel that offers everything except sex.

This is Ian’s second feature film. His first, Rebels Without a Clue, was filmed on Saddleworth Moors. It went on to win three awards at the Ibiza International Film Festival, and was nominated Best UK Feature at Raindance in 2010 - a major festival in London.

Both films were cast using over 90% Northern actors: “I believe in the talent base of crew and actors we have in the North West,” said Ian.

The film has been submitted to other large festivals around the world: “It’s now a waiting game, but the win helps get the film noticed. I hope it will turn up in cinemas in the near future, but sometimes it takes years for a tiny independent film to get distributed. I’m not holding my breath,” added Ian.