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7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
This is a difficult watch filled with soul-crushing testimony
Grenfell Uncovered (M, 101 minutes, Netflix) 4 stars Avoidable. That's a big takeaway from this devastating and eye-opening Netflix documentary. The loss of 72 innocent lives was avoidable. The Grenfell Tower disaster of 2017 probably still looms large in many people's minds. The high-rise unit block was full of families when a small fire in one apartment turned into an unmitigated disaster in the early hours of June 14. What should have been safely contained in a relatively short amount of time ended up engulfing the whole 24-storey tower due to the use of highly flammable plastic-infused cladding on the outside of the building. It was like The Towering Inferno had come to life. This documentary, from first-time director Olaide Sadiq, speaks to former residents of the tower, family members of tower residents, firefighters, journalists, building and fire experts, lobbyists, a lawyer and even then-British prime minister Theresa May. The picture it paints is frustratingly clear: if advice had been acted upon sooner, 72 lives may have been saved. Through Grenfell Uncovered we learn that the company which manufactured the cladding which was used to beautify the tower in the years before the disaster (being built in the early 1970s, Grenfell was considered an eyesore at the time, and the new facade was supposed to bring the tower up to modern aesthetic standards) had for years known that their product had a high fire risk - a risk which grew exponentially with the height of the building. The cladding was bound with a polyethylene core, and that particular product was illegal to use on apartment buildings in the US and elsewhere in Europe. However, the UK was lagging behind in regulations and the product was technically allowable at the time it was installed, even though it should never have been on the market. Experts explain that the David Cameron government (2010-16) had a deregulation agenda, and its members were forbidden from introducing any new regulations without first getting rid of an existing one. As such, repeated calls for changes to fire safety process and building requirements fell on deaf ears. Aside from the cladding, Grenfell Uncovered also goes into the outdated and ineffective "stay put" policy of the London Fire Brigade. This policy, which was standard for high-rise buildings at the time, instructed residents not to evacuate their homes, but instead to stay inside until told otherwise by firefighters. The advice would have been solid in a building that wasn't clad with flammable material, leading to an uncontainable spread of the fire. But this was not the case at Grenfell, and residents on higher floors who followed the advice found themselves unable to escape. The firefighters were also untrained in the nature of cladding fires, something that should have been put into place well before the disaster struck. In a film filled with horrible, soul-crushing testimony, it is perhaps the experiences of the firefighters that is the most harrowing to watch. One tells of his plight to find a young girl named Jessica after her sister asked him to bring her out from their flat. But he would never find her. Another tells one of the more emotionally devastating stories you'll ever hear, of staying on the phone with a young mother trapped in an apartment in the inaccessible upper storeys of the building, until she was no longer talking. Grenfell Uncovered is a difficult watch, especially considering how avoidable the whole tragedy was. But it also feels like incredibly necessary viewing for anyone in a position of governance, fire management or tenant management. There's a clear indication of the importance of listening to safety advice, and change should not only be made after dozens of lives are lost. Grenfell Uncovered (M, 101 minutes, Netflix) 4 stars Avoidable. That's a big takeaway from this devastating and eye-opening Netflix documentary. The loss of 72 innocent lives was avoidable. The Grenfell Tower disaster of 2017 probably still looms large in many people's minds. The high-rise unit block was full of families when a small fire in one apartment turned into an unmitigated disaster in the early hours of June 14. What should have been safely contained in a relatively short amount of time ended up engulfing the whole 24-storey tower due to the use of highly flammable plastic-infused cladding on the outside of the building. It was like The Towering Inferno had come to life. This documentary, from first-time director Olaide Sadiq, speaks to former residents of the tower, family members of tower residents, firefighters, journalists, building and fire experts, lobbyists, a lawyer and even then-British prime minister Theresa May. The picture it paints is frustratingly clear: if advice had been acted upon sooner, 72 lives may have been saved. Through Grenfell Uncovered we learn that the company which manufactured the cladding which was used to beautify the tower in the years before the disaster (being built in the early 1970s, Grenfell was considered an eyesore at the time, and the new facade was supposed to bring the tower up to modern aesthetic standards) had for years known that their product had a high fire risk - a risk which grew exponentially with the height of the building. The cladding was bound with a polyethylene core, and that particular product was illegal to use on apartment buildings in the US and elsewhere in Europe. However, the UK was lagging behind in regulations and the product was technically allowable at the time it was installed, even though it should never have been on the market. Experts explain that the David Cameron government (2010-16) had a deregulation agenda, and its members were forbidden from introducing any new regulations without first getting rid of an existing one. As such, repeated calls for changes to fire safety process and building requirements fell on deaf ears. Aside from the cladding, Grenfell Uncovered also goes into the outdated and ineffective "stay put" policy of the London Fire Brigade. This policy, which was standard for high-rise buildings at the time, instructed residents not to evacuate their homes, but instead to stay inside until told otherwise by firefighters. The advice would have been solid in a building that wasn't clad with flammable material, leading to an uncontainable spread of the fire. But this was not the case at Grenfell, and residents on higher floors who followed the advice found themselves unable to escape. The firefighters were also untrained in the nature of cladding fires, something that should have been put into place well before the disaster struck. In a film filled with horrible, soul-crushing testimony, it is perhaps the experiences of the firefighters that is the most harrowing to watch. One tells of his plight to find a young girl named Jessica after her sister asked him to bring her out from their flat. But he would never find her. Another tells one of the more emotionally devastating stories you'll ever hear, of staying on the phone with a young mother trapped in an apartment in the inaccessible upper storeys of the building, until she was no longer talking. Grenfell Uncovered is a difficult watch, especially considering how avoidable the whole tragedy was. But it also feels like incredibly necessary viewing for anyone in a position of governance, fire management or tenant management. There's a clear indication of the importance of listening to safety advice, and change should not only be made after dozens of lives are lost. Grenfell Uncovered (M, 101 minutes, Netflix) 4 stars Avoidable. That's a big takeaway from this devastating and eye-opening Netflix documentary. The loss of 72 innocent lives was avoidable. The Grenfell Tower disaster of 2017 probably still looms large in many people's minds. The high-rise unit block was full of families when a small fire in one apartment turned into an unmitigated disaster in the early hours of June 14. What should have been safely contained in a relatively short amount of time ended up engulfing the whole 24-storey tower due to the use of highly flammable plastic-infused cladding on the outside of the building. It was like The Towering Inferno had come to life. This documentary, from first-time director Olaide Sadiq, speaks to former residents of the tower, family members of tower residents, firefighters, journalists, building and fire experts, lobbyists, a lawyer and even then-British prime minister Theresa May. The picture it paints is frustratingly clear: if advice had been acted upon sooner, 72 lives may have been saved. Through Grenfell Uncovered we learn that the company which manufactured the cladding which was used to beautify the tower in the years before the disaster (being built in the early 1970s, Grenfell was considered an eyesore at the time, and the new facade was supposed to bring the tower up to modern aesthetic standards) had for years known that their product had a high fire risk - a risk which grew exponentially with the height of the building. The cladding was bound with a polyethylene core, and that particular product was illegal to use on apartment buildings in the US and elsewhere in Europe. However, the UK was lagging behind in regulations and the product was technically allowable at the time it was installed, even though it should never have been on the market. Experts explain that the David Cameron government (2010-16) had a deregulation agenda, and its members were forbidden from introducing any new regulations without first getting rid of an existing one. As such, repeated calls for changes to fire safety process and building requirements fell on deaf ears. Aside from the cladding, Grenfell Uncovered also goes into the outdated and ineffective "stay put" policy of the London Fire Brigade. This policy, which was standard for high-rise buildings at the time, instructed residents not to evacuate their homes, but instead to stay inside until told otherwise by firefighters. The advice would have been solid in a building that wasn't clad with flammable material, leading to an uncontainable spread of the fire. But this was not the case at Grenfell, and residents on higher floors who followed the advice found themselves unable to escape. The firefighters were also untrained in the nature of cladding fires, something that should have been put into place well before the disaster struck. In a film filled with horrible, soul-crushing testimony, it is perhaps the experiences of the firefighters that is the most harrowing to watch. One tells of his plight to find a young girl named Jessica after her sister asked him to bring her out from their flat. But he would never find her. Another tells one of the more emotionally devastating stories you'll ever hear, of staying on the phone with a young mother trapped in an apartment in the inaccessible upper storeys of the building, until she was no longer talking. Grenfell Uncovered is a difficult watch, especially considering how avoidable the whole tragedy was. But it also feels like incredibly necessary viewing for anyone in a position of governance, fire management or tenant management. There's a clear indication of the importance of listening to safety advice, and change should not only be made after dozens of lives are lost. Grenfell Uncovered (M, 101 minutes, Netflix) 4 stars Avoidable. That's a big takeaway from this devastating and eye-opening Netflix documentary. The loss of 72 innocent lives was avoidable. The Grenfell Tower disaster of 2017 probably still looms large in many people's minds. The high-rise unit block was full of families when a small fire in one apartment turned into an unmitigated disaster in the early hours of June 14. What should have been safely contained in a relatively short amount of time ended up engulfing the whole 24-storey tower due to the use of highly flammable plastic-infused cladding on the outside of the building. It was like The Towering Inferno had come to life. This documentary, from first-time director Olaide Sadiq, speaks to former residents of the tower, family members of tower residents, firefighters, journalists, building and fire experts, lobbyists, a lawyer and even then-British prime minister Theresa May. The picture it paints is frustratingly clear: if advice had been acted upon sooner, 72 lives may have been saved. Through Grenfell Uncovered we learn that the company which manufactured the cladding which was used to beautify the tower in the years before the disaster (being built in the early 1970s, Grenfell was considered an eyesore at the time, and the new facade was supposed to bring the tower up to modern aesthetic standards) had for years known that their product had a high fire risk - a risk which grew exponentially with the height of the building. The cladding was bound with a polyethylene core, and that particular product was illegal to use on apartment buildings in the US and elsewhere in Europe. However, the UK was lagging behind in regulations and the product was technically allowable at the time it was installed, even though it should never have been on the market. Experts explain that the David Cameron government (2010-16) had a deregulation agenda, and its members were forbidden from introducing any new regulations without first getting rid of an existing one. As such, repeated calls for changes to fire safety process and building requirements fell on deaf ears. Aside from the cladding, Grenfell Uncovered also goes into the outdated and ineffective "stay put" policy of the London Fire Brigade. This policy, which was standard for high-rise buildings at the time, instructed residents not to evacuate their homes, but instead to stay inside until told otherwise by firefighters. The advice would have been solid in a building that wasn't clad with flammable material, leading to an uncontainable spread of the fire. But this was not the case at Grenfell, and residents on higher floors who followed the advice found themselves unable to escape. The firefighters were also untrained in the nature of cladding fires, something that should have been put into place well before the disaster struck. In a film filled with horrible, soul-crushing testimony, it is perhaps the experiences of the firefighters that is the most harrowing to watch. One tells of his plight to find a young girl named Jessica after her sister asked him to bring her out from their flat. But he would never find her. Another tells one of the more emotionally devastating stories you'll ever hear, of staying on the phone with a young mother trapped in an apartment in the inaccessible upper storeys of the building, until she was no longer talking. Grenfell Uncovered is a difficult watch, especially considering how avoidable the whole tragedy was. But it also feels like incredibly necessary viewing for anyone in a position of governance, fire management or tenant management. There's a clear indication of the importance of listening to safety advice, and change should not only be made after dozens of lives are lost.
Buzz Feed
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Grenfell Uncovered Reviews: Netflix Documentary Hailed As 'Urgent' And 'Heartwrenching'
ASSOCIATED PRESS A new documentary exploring the Grenfell Tower disaster is being lauded by critics. In June 2017, a fire broke out at the tower block in North Kensington, London, killing at least 72 people. Eight years later, questions are still being asked about the tragedy – which are explored further in Netflix's new documentary Grenfell Uncovered. An official Netflix synopsis for the doc reads: 'This feature length documentary examines the disturbing chain of events that led to the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017. 'By uncovering actions taken by business and government years before the tragedy, the film shines a light on how it could have been prevented, and 72 lives could have been saved. The documentary gives a platform to survivors, bereaved families and firefighters to share their story.' The documentary has already been praised as 'agonising', 'rage-inducing' and 'heartwrenching' by critics in their early reviews. Here's a selection of what has been said about it so far… The Guardian (5/5) 'The 2017 Grenfell Tower fire in London which caused 72 deaths is now the subject of Olaide Sadiq's heartwrenching and enraging documentary, digging at the causes and movingly interviewing survivors and their families, whose testimony is all but unbearable. At the very least, the film will remind you that when politicians smugly announce they wish to make a bonfire of regulations, they should be taken, under police escort if necessary, and made to stand at the foot of the tower.' The Telegraph (5/5) 'Vital journalism [...] the documentary's trump card is its editing. That sounds very boring, but for the viewer it means a linear narrative, starting from the first 999 call, that then spread its tentacles down timelines of personal stories and historic corporate malfeasance. The dexterous splicing means that in spite of all this context, the film retains an agonising momentum.' The Standard (4/5) 'This litany of failures is rage-inducing [...] the information is technically already out there, but it's never really been condensed into something this concise and easily understandable before – certainly not on a massive streaming channel like Netflix, which will put it in front of millions of viewers.' The Independent (4/5) '[Netflix has] plenty of schlocky miniseries about serial killers, but when it comes to institutional failings and social affairs, they are more sensitive [...] this dynamic – the film is more interested in apportioning blame than it is in memorialising the victims – makes it feel raw, angry and urgent.' Financial Times (4/5) 'The film is upsetting and harrowing throughout, but it is driven by a clear sense of a need for justice, and an acknowledgment of the lack of justice to date. Though Mr Bates vs The Post Office was a drama, and this is a documentary, Grenfell: Uncovered may well have a similar effect on the public's understanding of what happened in 2017.'
Time Out
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
‘Grenfell: Uncovered' interview: ‘This community lost so much and got so little back'
The biggest residential fire since the Blitz broke out in Grenfell tower on June 14, 2017. Few Londoners can have shaken off the memory of the North Kensington high-rise blazing through the night as firefighters worked desperately – and fruitlessly – to subdue it. 'I was on holiday in Thailand at the time,' remembers Grenfell: Uncovered director Olaide Sadiq. 'The news [chyron] had 'fire in London' on it, but I didn't think it was real. I didn't understand how it was even possible that this had happened.' When she got back to the UK, the filmmaker discovered that she knew one of the victims of the fire – 'Her face was popping up in group chats as missing' – which added a personal dimension to the disaster. Eight years on, her documentary about the fire is both poignant and enraging. None of the responsible parties is let off the hook – cladding manufacturers like Arconic, bureaucrats like Hammersmith and Fulham Council, and politicians alike – but the deeper story is one of resilience and misplaced trust. 'This was the biggest residential fire in Britain since the Blitz,' says Sadiq. 'You expect this kind of devastation at war, but you don't expect it in the middle of the night when people are sleeping.' You speak to a lot of traumatised people in the film. How did you approach those interviews? With respect and care. A lot of the Grenfell community have been poked and prodded for a long time, and there's a lot of trauma in everyone that's been affected by the story. We had to make it as safe a space as possible. The interviews were still the hardest I've ever done. You interrogate the companies behind the cladding products. How challenging was that aspect of the film? Yeah, the corporate side of things was complicated and eye-opening. A lot of people didn't want to speak to us, and understandably so, but everyone was given an opportunity to respond. But I'm very aware there's an ongoing criminal investigation, so I wasn't expecting anyone to welcome us with open arms. Are you concerned that a fire like this could happen again? Yeah, I think I am. We've had cladding fires since Grenfell: there was a fatal cladding fire in Valencia last year, and another one in Dagenham, where luckily there were no fatalities. I have to think that it's possible that it will happen again. Hopefully, the response will be different. The Prime Minister at the time, Theresa May, famously failed to meet Grenfell survivors. How did you get her to talk in the film? The decision to talk to us was quick; the decision to be on camera was slower. Regardless of people's political affiliations and opinions, I think it was quite brave [of her]. She wanted to own what she did and didn't do. She was happy to own that on camera, and we gave her the opportunity to do that. I respected that. What does this story say about the country that we live in? Great question. That we place a lot of trust in those that are meant to look after us. It showed me that this country is sometimes hesitant to change, but hopefully this film will spark real conversations about change. It's what the people affected by Grenfell want. Accountability, as well. You must have had two audiences in mind: the Grenfell survivors groups and those who were less familiar with the story? The story is not finished for [the Grenfell groups]. They are still waiting for what the Met Police decides to do. They're hoping [the film] brings more awareness to their story. We want it to ignite real conversation about what happened and what people want to happen next. There's still a lot of buildings with flammable cladding on them. What did you learn about Londoners making this film? I felt a sense of closeness within the community, but a sadness to it. I've always felt relatively safe living in London. What working on this showed me is that there's times it isn't safe – but in a way that you're not expecting. If you go down a dark alley in the middle of the night, you might expect something bad to happen to you, but they went to bed and woke up in the middle of night with their building on fire. That's the biggest violation of safety most people could experience. What binds the survivors together? Resilience. We spoke to very young people, we spoke to grandparents, and across the board there was a sense of resilience that I was astounded by. I was breaking down just reading the witness statements – it was harrowing. I couldn't imagine how people could get up and go after that. There was such resilience and strength in the community that lost so much and got so little back. The community lost so much and got so little back How do you cope with watching this harrowing footage, day after day? It was very difficult. It was really hard to watch some of the footage – some of it was too harrowing to use. I went for walks and listened to cheesy music, but there were people there to support us as well. I had to make sure I wasn't always sitting with the images.
Time Out
20-06-2025
- Time Out
Grenfell: Uncovered
There's a protocol you can count on to follow a public disaster in this country. It tends to begin with a years' long and expensive inquiry, and end with little change and none of the responsible parties being held to account. Some, if they're lucky, may even find themselves elevated to the House of Lords. That establishment playbook is in operation again in this poignant, winding and righteously angry documentary about the Grenfell tower fire – just as it was in ITV's Mr Bates vs The Post Office or Disney+'s 7/7 drama Suspect. Directed with forensic skill and lots of compassion by first-timer Olaide Sadiq, Grenfell: Uncovered holds the survivors of the fire in one hand, honouring their anger and grief in moving interviews, while using the other to slap down the many companies and governmental bodies whose decisions led to the loss of 72 lives on the night of June 14, 2017. The title, of course, has a poignant double meaning. The aluminium cladding applied to the residential tower block for aesthetic reasons – supposedly to satisfy Grenfell's well-heeled neighbours in the borough of Kensington and Chelsea – turned a small kitchen fire into a building-wide inferno, transforming the Fire Brigade's 'stay put' policy into a death sentence for residents. This is a poignant, winding and righteously angry documentary Sadiq pieces the night of the fire back together using audio from the emergency services, news footage, and the shakycam videos of locals. The shock and dawning horror of disembodied voices as the blaze takes hold stays with you. The list of guilty parties is long – from David Cameron's deregulation craze, to the deeply cynical cladding manufacturers, to the cost and corner-cutting of local government, and beyond – and even on that roll of dishonour ex-housing minister Eric Pickles (now Lord Pickles) is especially odious: telling the Grenfell inquiry not to 'waste his time' and confusing the death toll with Hillsborough. Campaigning housing journalist Peter Apps, heartbroken firefighter David Badillo, and a host of Grenfell residents, including teenage survivor Luana Gomes, bring humanity and heart to the story. There's so much in Grenfell: Uncovered about the state of modern Britain that Sadiq does brilliantly not to get sidetracked. About how working-class communities are talked down to and ignored. About how capitalism pursues profit even at the expense of endangering lives. About how the urgent need for change is stymied and sapped by the very review process designed to expedite it.
Cosmopolitan
20-06-2025
- General
- Cosmopolitan
Grenfell Tower now: finally, after eight years the government has announced new plans for the site
Eight years after a tragic fire broke out claiming the lives of 72 people, Grenfell Tower still stands in North Kensington, the fire-damaged building is as a stark reminder of the 72 people who were killed in the blaze eight years ago. Now, a new Netflix documentary has gone into granular detail about the fire, with Grenfell: Uncovered looking into the factors that led to the fateful event on 14 June. It took 60 hours for the fire to be fully extinguished. While the main building itself is made of concrete, the building's exterior was clad in aluminium composite material (ACM) with polyethylene (PE) at its core. PE is highly flammable, which led to the quick spread of the fire. The building is now badly damaged, with a 2020 report saying some of the disrepair to the upper levels of the tower had been exacerbated by the weather conditions. In 2018, in the run-up to the first anniversary, the top few floors of the tower had a sign added; a large green heart, which has come to be representative of Grenfell, as well as the statement: Grenfell: Forever in Our Hearts However, the government has since announced new plans for the tower block – which have not necessarily been warmly received by survivors or by those who lost loved ones in the fire. Cosmopolitan UK speaks to Jackie and Bernie Bernard, who lost their brother Ray to the Grenfell fire, as well as Grenfell: Uncovered documentary maker Olaide Sadiq, about future plans for Grenfell. In February this year, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner confirmed plans to demolish Grenfell Tower. In a statement, the government said they had consulted independent expert advice, with engineers advising 'it is not practicable to retain many of the floors of the building in place as part of a memorial that must last in perpetuity'. Because of this, the Deputy Prime Minister has concluded ' that it would not be fair to keep some floors of the building that are significant to some families, whilst not being able to do so for others'. It will now take two years for the tower to be deconstructed, with the government saying this will be done in a 'careful and sensitive way'. However, this has not been welcomed by everyone in the community. Speaking to Cosmopolitan UK, Bernie explained: 'Personally, I think it's an insult. 'I think everybody understands the tower has to come down, but it doesn't have to come down to ground level. 'I'm saying is at least keep the main reception intact so that we have a place where we can go to grieve the people that were cremated in that building. The plans aren't something the bereaved have welcomed.' Olaide Sadiq, who attended the most recent Grenfell memorial earlier this month, agreed the mood was sombre amongst those who are part of the community. 'I think there was a there was a large shock within the community when they decided that's what they were doing with the tower,' she tells Cosmopolitan UK. 'While making the documentary, a lot of our contributors told us they go to the tower regularly. It's a second grave site for them for when they want to pay their respects to people they've lost. 'There's an understanding that perhaps the building can't remain 24 storeys high, but when the tower is brought down to ground level, it's gone – and if it's out of sight, it's out of mind.' A report by the Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission said construction of a permanent memorial to those affected by the Grenfell fire could begin as early as 2026. The commission, which is comprised of of representatives of the bereaved, survivors, local residents as well as two independent co-chairs, was created in order to ensure the community was at the heart of decisions on the long-term future of the site. Plans are thought to include a garden, monument and space for grieving. The commission said: "Everyone agrees that if Grenfell Tower comes down, it should be dismantled with care and respect, and in a way that honours our loved ones who were taken from us." Kimberley Bond is a Multiplatform Writer for Harper's Bazaar, focusing on the arts, culture, careers and lifestyle. She previously worked as a Features Writer for Cosmopolitan UK, and has bylines at The Telegraph, The Independent and British Vogue among countless others.
