Was Charlie Chaplin born in a Smethwick Gypsy camp?

Black Patch Park has been home to members of the Gypsy, Romany and Traveller community since the mid 19th Century, living in caravans and tents. , external

The community was officially evicted in 1909, their presence now commemorated with a plaque unveiled in 2015.

Carmen Chaplin said it was “very important” to screen the film in Birmingham, close to the Black Patch.

The director added: “For my father this movie was very much about honouring my grandfather’s Romany heritage and he really wanted to say that Charlie was part of the Romany culture.”

Without a birth certificate, no one will ever know the truth.

But the story of the Black Patch, the Spirit of the Tramp, and a mysterious letter locked in a bedside table, romanticises even more the man who made his humble beginnings and rebellious spirit the calling cards of his worldwide fame.

As he said in his 1952 film Limelight, as he reflected on his career: “It’s the tramp in me, I suppose.”