The sexist antics and policies of the villainous Franklin are fascinating – and pertinent, alas – to observe from the era of Me Too and class actions against Harvey Weinstein. Fonda, who developed the film through her own production company, was inspired by the work of Karen Nussbaum, an anti-war activist and the founder of 9to5, an organisation advocating for working women.

But there's something irresistible about the sisterly bond at the heart of the film.

Dolly Parton is a sweet secretary who is relentlessly pursued by her “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot” boss, Franklin Hart Jr, played to delightfully slimy effect by Dabney Coleman. Jane Fonda is the mousy Judy who returns to employment after her husband runs off with his secretary: years of married isolation have left her ill-equipped for the workplace and for the larger world. Lily Tomlin plays Violet Newstead, a hardworking widow with four kids, who has been repeatedly passed over for promotion in favour of mediocre men. Reissued as the centrepiece of BFI's Comedy Genius blockbuster season, 9 to 5 retains a barbed relevance beneath its capering and unflattering hairstyles, not to mention one of cinema's most badass trios. Next month marks 37 years since the release of this knockabout feminist comedy, which went on to become the second biggest film of 1980 ( The Empire Strikes Back nabbed the top spot). The nightmarish capitalist scenario depicted in Dolly Parton's theme song – 'Working 9 to 5/ What a way to make a living' – must now sound like a utopian fantasy to zero-hour contracted millennials.

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