Joe Ward Munrow

The Legend of Ned Ludd

★★★★★

The concept of machines taking over the world has a long tradition within popular culture. From Terminator’s thumbs up as he descends to a fiery death, to Westworld, I Robot and 2001: A Space Odyssey, technology is often portrayed as going rouge to create a form of dystopian future. With the rise of Artificial Intelligence, Deep Fakes, and outsourcing of work to automation the apocalyptic wasteland can feel as though it’s within touching distance. The role of humans in all these scenarios is rarely touched upon. In the first of the three homegrown productions celebrating the Everyman’s 60th anniversary, The Legend of Ned Ludd aims to look more at the human elements of technology, exploring what happens when machines make decisions, and showing that the impact of technology is a timeless, worldwide question.