What is the story of Shirley Valentine?

Shirley Valentine is a 1989 British romantic comedy-drama film directed by Lewis Gilbert and based on a script by Willy Russell.

The movie’s plot follows Shirley Valentine (Pauline Collins), a bored 42-year-old working class Liverpudlian housewife whose life and initially enriching marriage has settled into a narrow and unsatisfying rut, leaving few real friends and her childhood dreams unaccomplished.

As a result, she feels as if her husband and children treat her more like a servant.

Feeling trapped in a world of domesticity, Shirley, a housewife from Liverpool, England, needs a change in her life before she has another conversation with the walls.

When her friend Jane (Alison Steadman) invites her on a trip to a Greek island, Shirley jumps at the chance.

However, after they arrived in Greece, Jane ditched Shirley for a fling with a passenger she met on the plane.

The implication is that Shirley is left to find her own way.

She wanders the island, meets a taverna owner (Tom Conti) and begins to find the joy in life again.