KATIE TAYLOR’S DOCUMENTARY film Katie will air on RTÉ One next Tuesday night (15 January) at 22:15, and will become available to stream on various video-on-demand platforms in the UK from Monday 14 January onwards.
Directed by Ross Whitaker (Anthony Foley: Munsterman, Between Land and Sea), the award-winning film follows Taylor as she patches her life back together after the Rio Olympics and embarks on upon a second career of sorts, this time in the even more perilous and diabolical domain of boxing’s paid ranks.
Katie, which for the first time sees Taylor openly address her split from her trainer and father, Pete Taylor, received an extended stay in Irish cinemas before Christmas and was universally lauded by viewers across the country.
I’m not known for talking but what I've struggled to express in words has been brilliantly captured by @rosswhitakertv in this documentary. I'm very proud of it and you can catch 'Katie' in Irish cinemas from today with times and locations available at https://t.co/EhzYkkzXRb. pic.twitter.com/A2oJP55Iaw
— Katie Taylor (@KatieTaylor) October 26, 2018
“For the first time, maybe, people will see the real me in the documentary — get to know my real personality,” Taylor told The42 of the film prior to its cinematic release. “And I think that’s very, very important, but most importantly, I guess I just hoped it would encourage people and inspire people.
“You know, sometimes life doesn’t go the way you want,” she added. “You have ups and downs in life all the time; every single person in life can go through that and find themselves at a low point.
“And I think it’s how you react to them — those low points, those losses, those disappointments — that actually make you who you are.
For me, the Rio Olympics was the lowest moment of my career… Of my life, really. I really was at a low point during that time. And if I can get through it, anyone can.
“That was a big deal for me when deciding to do the documentary. I felt like, even after the Rio Olympics, ‘This isn’t the end. The best is still to come.’ And hopefully others can take something from that.”
In November, director Whitaker wrote in The42 of his experience making the film, which began filming directly after Taylor’s Rio debacle.
“From the beginning, Katie agreed that the film should be “honest, real and truthful” and in the early interviews there was almost a sense that she had things that she wanted to get off her chest,” he recalled.
It seemed like everyone in the media had written about Katie’s difficulties. Some had written her off. This film was Katie’s opportunity to tell her story, from her point of view. At times I felt sick to my stomach watching Katie break down as she discussed the devastation of 2016.
As well as its RTÉ airing on Tuesday night, the film will become available on iTunes, Amazon Prime, Sky Store, Microsoft and Google in the UK from Monday, as well as Irish independent film streaming service Volta.
You can read our full review of Katie, featuring interviews with Taylor and Whitaker, here.
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