Everything you need to know about the Bafta-winning film I Swear

Here’s everything you need to know about the Bafta award-winning film I Swear.

The biopic, starring Robert Aramayo, tells the story of Scottish campaigner for Tourette syndrome, John Davidson, who developed the condition when he was 12.

Set in Galashiels, a town in the Scottish Borders, the film follows Davidson and his journey to advocating for better awareness of the condition, which, according to the NHS, causes you to make sudden, repetitive sounds or movements, known as tics.

There is currently no cure, but treatment can help manage the tics.

Aramayo stars alongside Peter Mullan, Maxine Peak and Shirley Henderson in the film by Kirk Jones, which recounts Davidson’s experience growing up in the 80s when the condition was largely unknown.

Throughout I Swear, Davidson is bullied, beaten up and at one point arrested as a result of people not understanding his outbursts.

The film follows on from the 1989 documentary John’s Not Mad, which followed 16-year-old Davidson around his hometown as he lived with the condition.

Davidson has since gone on to advocate for greater awareness of the condition and was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 2019 for his campaigning work – a central theme in the film.

Aramayo picked up the leading actor gong for his portrayal of Davidson during the 79th Bafta award ceremony, where he also received the EE Rising Star award.

The impact of the film was praised by Davidson, who told the Press Association: “The power that the film’s got is the fact that it’s opened people’s eyes to the real issues.”