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Basil Radford
Arthur Basil RadfordAdam Greaves, "Radford, (Arthur) Basil (1897–1952)", ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, May 201available online Retrieved 3 August 2020. (25 June 189720 October 1952) was an English character actor who featured in many British films of the 1930s and 1940s. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and made his first stage appearance in July 1924. He is probably best remembered for his appearances alongside Naunton Wayne as two cricket-obsessed Englishmen in several films from 1938 to 1949. Early life Radford was born in Chester, England, on 25 June 1897. First World War He was a commissioned officer in the British South Staffordshire Regiment in the First World War, in 1918 transferring into the Royal Air Force, ending the war as a subaltern when he was demobilised in 1920. Radford had a crescent-shaped scar on his right cheek from a wound sustained during his time in the trenches. Depending on the lighting and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Naunton Wayne
Naunton Wayne (born Henry Wayne Davies, 22 June 1901 – 17 November 1970), was a Welsh character actor, born in Pontypridd, Glamorgan, Wales. He was educated at Clifton College. His name was changed by deed poll in 1933. Stage actor His first London stage roles were in ''Streamline'' at the Palace in 1934 and in ''1066 and All That'' at the Strand in 1935 (where he provided comic continuity for other performers). His first full role was as Norman Weldon in ''Wise Tomorrow'' at The Lyric in 1937. He played Mortimer Brewster in '' Arsenic and Old Lace'' at the Strand for four years. He was a leading member of The Stage Golfing Society. From November 1956 he appeared in the long-running farce ''The Bride and the Bachelor'' at the Duchess Theatre. Film actor He became best known for his role as a supporting character, Caldicott, in the 1938 film version of '' The Lady Vanishes'', a role he repeated in three further films, alongside Basil Radford as his equally cricket-obsessed f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Lady Vanishes (1938 Film)
''The Lady Vanishes'' is a 1938 British mystery thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave. Written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder, based on the 1936 novel '' The Wheel Spins'' by Ethel Lina White, the film is about a beautiful English tourist travelling by train in continental Europe who discovers that her elderly travelling companion seems to have disappeared from the train. After her fellow passengers deny ever having seen the elderly lady, the young woman is helped by a young musicologist, the two proceeding to search the train for clues to the old lady's disappearance. ''The Lady Vanishes'' was filmed at the Gainsborough Studios in Islington, London. Hitchcock caught Hollywood's attention with the film and moved to Hollywood soon after its release. Although the director's three previous efforts had done poorly at the box office, ''The Lady Vanishes'' was widely successful, and confirmed American producer David O. Sel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Way To The Stars
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun '' thee'') when followed by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Young And Innocent
''Young and Innocent'', released in the US as ''The Girl Was Young'', is a 1937 British crime thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Nova Pilbeam and Derrick De Marney. Based on the 1936 novel '' A Shilling for Candles'' by Josephine Tey, the film is about a young man on the run from a murder charge who enlists the help of a woman who must put herself at risk for his cause. An elaborately staged crane shot Hitchcock devised, which appears towards the end of the film, identifies the real murderer. Plot On a stormy night, at a retreat on the English coast, Christine Clay (Pamela Carme), a successful actress, argues passionately with her jealous ex-husband Guy ( George Curzon). Not accepting her Reno divorce as valid, he accuses her of having an affair. Finally, she slaps him and he leaves the room. While they had been arguing, his eyes twitched violently; they continue to do so when, once outside, he turns angrily to look at the closed door behind him. The next ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Passport To Pimlico
''Passport to Pimlico'' is a 1949 British comedy film made by Ealing Studios and starring Stanley Holloway, Margaret Rutherford and Hermione Baddeley. It was directed by Henry Cornelius and written by T. E. B. Clarke. The story concerns the unearthing of treasure and documents that lead to a small part of Pimlico to be declared a legal part of the House of Burgundy, and therefore exempt from the post-war rationing or other bureaucratic restrictions active in Britain at the time. ''Passport to Pimlico'' explores the spirit and unity of wartime London in a post-war context and offers an examination of the English character. Like other Ealing comedies, the film pits a small group of British against a series of changes to the ''status quo'' from an external agent. The story was an original concept by the screenwriter T. E. B. Clarke. He was inspired by an incident during the Second World War, when the maternity ward of Ottawa Civic Hospital was temporarily declared extraterrito ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stop Press Girl
''Stop Press Girl'' is a 1949 British fantasy comedy film directed by Michael Barry and starring Sally Ann Howes, Gordon Jackson, Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne; the latter two appearing in several different roles in the film. The film was one of the four of David Rawnsley's films that used his "independent frame" technique, a form of back projection. Plot Roy Fairfax, junior partner for timepiece manufacturers Fairfax & Sons, arrives in the quiet village of Slipfold to visit his fiancée Jennfier Peters and ask her uncle for permission to marry. On his way through town in his new motorcar, Roy causes a commotion and spooks the horse of village dentist Arthur Peters. Arriving at her home, Roy encourages Jennifer to join him for a drive and gives her a new watch in lieu of an engagement ring, however Jennifer explains she never wears a watch as they always seem to stop. After only fifteen minutes Roy's car stops working as does the watch he gave to Jennifer and later his ow ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
It's Not Cricket (1949 Film)
''It's Not Cricket'' is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Alfred Roome and starring Basil Radford, Naunton Wayne, Susan Shaw and Maurice Denham. It is the second (after 1941's ''Crook's Tour'') of two starring films for Radford and Wayne who appeared as supporting players in ten other films. It was also one of the final films made by Gainsborough Pictures before the studio was merged into the Rank Organisation. Plot Major Bright and Captain Early are intelligence officers in the British army of occupation in post-World War 2 Germany. They are sent home on leave, but fail to notice that their new batman is actually wanted war criminal Otto Fisch. He vanishes on arrival in England and the two officers are punished by early demobilisation. Uncertain what to do in civvy street, they decide to use the "skills" they learned in the army and set up a private detective agency, "Bright and Early". They engage a secretary, Primrose Brown, but she's not very busy as they have as ye ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quartet (1948 Film)
''Quartet'' is a 1948 British anthology film with four segments, each based on a story by W. Somerset Maugham. The author appears at the start and end of the movie to introduce the stories and comment about his writing career. It was successful enough to produce two sequels, '' Trio'' (1950) and ''Encore'' (1951), and popularised the compendium film format, leading to films such as '' O. Henry's Full House'' in 1952. The screenplays for the stories were all written by R. C. Sherriff. The Facts of Life Based on "The Facts of Life", included in the 1940 collection of Maugham stories '' The Mixture as Before''. * Director: Ralph Smart * Cinematographer: Ray Elton Cast * Jack Watling as Nicky * Mai Zetterling as Jeanne * Basil Radford as Henry Garnet * Angela Baddeley as Mrs. Garnet * Naunton Wayne as Leslie * Ian Fleming as Ralph * Jack Raine as Thomas * James Robertson Justice as Branksome Plot Despite their reservations, Mr. and Mrs. Garnet allow their promising tennis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dead Of Night
''Dead of Night'' is a 1945 black and white British anthology horror film, made by Ealing Studios. The individual segments were directed by Alberto Cavalcanti, Charles Crichton, Basil Dearden and Robert Hamer. It stars Mervyn Johns, Googie Withers, Sally Ann Howes and Michael Redgrave. The film is best remembered for the concluding story featuring Redgrave and an insane ventriloquist's malevolent dummy. ''Dead of Night'' is a rare British horror film of the 1940s; horror films were banned from production in Britain during the war. It had an influence on subsequent British films in the genre. Both of John Baines' stories were reused for later films and the ventriloquist dummy episode was adapted into the pilot episode of the long-running CBS radio series ''Escape''. While primarily in the horror genre, the film has shades of the comedy that would make the studio's name. Plot Walter Craig arrives at a country cottage in Kent, where he is greeted by his host Elliot Foley. Cr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Millions Like Us
''Millions Like Us'' is a 1943 British propaganda film, showing life in a wartime aircraft factory in documentary detail. It starred Patricia Roc, Gordon Jackson, Anne Crawford, Eric Portman and Megs Jenkins. It was co-written and co-directed by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder. According to the British Film Institute database, this film is the first in an "unofficial trilogy", along with '' Two Thousand Women'' (1944) and '' Waterloo Road'' (1945). Plot The opening credits show huge crowds of workers going into factories. The narrator begins the film with nostalgic views of crowded beaches and remembering what it was like to eat an orange (unavailable in the war). Celia Crowson and her family go on holiday to the south coast of England in the summer of 1939, staying in the guest house they visit every year. Soon afterwards, the Second World War breaks out and Celia's father joins what was to become the Home Guard. Her more confident sister Phyllis joins the Auxiliary Territo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Next Of Kin
''The Next of Kin'', also known as ''Next of Kin'', is a 1942 Second World War propaganda film produced by Ealing Studios. The film was originally commissioned by the British War Office as a training film to promote the government message that " Careless talk costs lives". After being taken on by Ealing Studios, the project was expanded and given a successful commercial release. After the war and up until at least the mid 1960s, services in British Commonwealth countries continued to use ''The Next of Kin'' as part of security training. The film's title is derived from the phrase "the next of kin have been informed" as used by radio announcers when reporting on the loss of personnel in action. Plot In preparing for a secret raid on a German-held French coastal village, a British security officer is chosen to monitor activities in England among army personnel of the 95th Infantry as well as civilians with whom they mingle. At the same time, German intelligence send Agents 23 a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crook's Tour
''Crook's Tour'' is a 1941 black and white British film directed by John Baxter featuring Charters and Caldicott. It is adapted from a BBC radio serial of the same name. Plot Charters and Caldicott are touring the Middle East (Saudi Arabia) with fellow Britons. After their vehicle breaks down they meet a caravan and a local sheikh invites them to dinner. After a glass of wine the sheikh offers to lend them two camels and tells of his fears that someone is spying on his oilfield. They return to Baghdad where they go to a night club. Here two spies are expected and a Mata Hari type figure (the glamorous La Palermo) delivers a note (hidden on a record) to them in error, because they order exactly what the true spies are meant to order (as a code). When the real spies arrive (two Americans) and make the same order the mistake is realised. Meanwhile our two heroes are flying to Istanbul. Here they are directed to a false hotel. La Palermo is to sing there to let them know somethi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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