After his acclaimed video for Once And For All, Ben Strebel follows up with another fine collaboration with Clock Opera for The Lost Buoys – and comes up with a sort of gothic tale with a modern resonance.

Like in Once And For All the central character is a man in his later years, but in complete contrast to the shy old guy played by Dudley Sutton in the last video, this is a portrait of a wealthy man who becomes a monster, and then pays a heavy price.

Alun Armstrong plays the plutocrat who rejects his wife and daughter – played by Maggie O’Neill and Catherine Steadman – and then starts imagining things as he starts seriously hitting the bottle. It’s a powerhouse performance from Armstrong – playing nasty, brutish and mad for a change, after years starring cuddly TV cop show New Tricks…

“With the headlines constantly dominated by economical downfalls and deception, I wanted to explore the inevitable loneliness of an extremely avaricious individual,” explains Ben Strebel. “A man desperate to protect his material possessions. A desperation that isolates him from those closest to him, forcing him deeper and deeper into a resolute state of withdrawal. A desperation that in the end drives him to the brink of insanity.

“It was such an honour to work with some of my all time favourite British actors – Alun Armstrong in particular who really brought this flawed character to life.”

Clock Opera
The Lost Buoys
Director: Ben Strebel
Prod co: Somesuch & Co
Producer: Tina Pawlik
Exec Producer: Tash Tan
Director of Photography: Lukas Strebel
1st Assistant Director: Anna Haffers
Stylist: Bex Crofton-Atkins
Production Designer: Blair Barnette
Production Assistant: Hannah Gracie
Editor: Hazel Baillie
Post Exec Producer: Rahel Makonnen
VFX Producer: Eliana Carranza-Pitcher
Colourist: Houmam Abdallah
Flame Artist: Chris Scott
Watch: here