Article: His films are acclaimed around the world. So why do we find Mike Leigh so hard to love?

There is an unforgettable scene in Mike Leigh's Life Is Sweet where Aubrey, a posturing and overweight sous-chef, decides to open the Regret Rien restaurant in an Enfield shopping parade.

With great concentration, he decorates it with weird and witty items, lovingly concocts a menu of tripe souffle, king prawns with jam and grilled trotters on eggs-over-easy, and throws open the doors. And when nobody comes in he destroys the place in a fit of self-pity which we know, even before he has finished, he will regret.

Aubrey is almost certainly an indifferent cook and Mike Leigh a film- maker of genius, but there are parallels between the creator and his victim. For the 53-year-old Leigh ...

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