New film tells the story of Winston Churchill and his women

Few figures loom as large in public consciousness as Winston Churchill. His image is easy to conjure up in our minds - cigar in hand, rotund in stature, writes Laura Harding.

It is harder - perhaps impossible - to visualise the women who helped him through some of the greatest challenges he faced during his first weeks in office as prime minister in 1940, during the early days of the Second World War.

It is that period, as he faced pressure from within his party to pursue peace with Hitler at any cost, that is the focus of Darkest Hour, the new film by Atonement director Joe Wright.