''Convict 99'' is a 1938 British

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Marcel Varnel Marcel Varnel (16 October 1892 – 13 July 1947) was a French film director, notable for his career in the United States and England as a director of plays and films. Biography He was born Marcel Hyacinthe le Bozec in Paris, France. Varnel st ...

and starring Will Hay,

Moore Marriott George Thomas Moore Marriott (14 September 1885 – 11 December 1949) was an English character actor best remembered for the series of films he made with Will Hay. His first appearance with Hay was in the film '' Dandy Dick'' (1935), but he ...

, Graham Moffatt and Googie Withers. It was one of several comedies Hay made for producer Ted Black.

Plot

Incompetent Dr Benjamin Twist is dismissed from his job as headmaster at St. Michael's School (the school returns in a later film '' The Ghost of St. Michael's''), and applies for a job in another school. Going for interview, he is called into another office where they are expecting John Benjamin, a strict

prison governor The warden ( US, Canada) or governor ( UK, Australia), also known as a superintendent (US, South Asia) or director (UK, New Zealand), is the official who is in charge of a prison. Name In the United States, Mexico, and Canada, warden is the mo ...

recently arrived from Australia who is applying for the vacancy at Blackdown Prison in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

. On the way to what Twist believes is the school, he becomes drunk, and on arrival is mistaken for Max Slessor, a prisoner who had escaped during a jailbreak. Designated Convict 99 and in for seven years for

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally consists of the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific mens rea, intent to wikt:defraud#English, defraud. Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be fo ...

, Twist is soon discovered to be the new Prison Governor, and once put in his (dubiously) rightful place embarks on a programme to make the prison a more friendly place for the prisoners, funding it from the proceeds of a

football pools In the United Kingdom, the football pools, often referred to as "the pools", is a betting pool based on predicting the outcome of association football matches taking place in the coming week. The pools are typically cheap to enter, and may enc ...

win and stock market investments. Things take a turn for the worse, when the recaptured Slessor escapes again with a signed cheque. Altering the figures, he draws the entire prison funds from the bank. Twist and some of the convicts head in a prison van to

Limehouse Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains throu ...

, in east London, to catch Slessor, recover the lost funds and then successfully break into the bank in the middle of the night to return the money.

Cast

* Will Hay as Dr. Benjamin Twist *

as Jerry "The Mole" * Graham Moffatt as Albert * Googie Withers as Lottie "The Baroness" *

Peter Gawthorne Peter Gawthorne (1 September 1884 – 17 March 1962) was an Anglo-Irish actor, probably best known for his roles in the films of Will Hay and other popular British comedians of the 1930s and 1940s. Gawthorne was one of Britain's most called-up ...

as Sir Cyril *

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 chara ...

as Deputy Governor * Dennis Wyndham as Head Warder * Wilfred Walter as Max Slessor * Alf Goddard as Sykes * Basil McGrail as Bates * Kathleen Harrison as Mable *

Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 3 October 1998) was a British-American actor whose career spanned over 270 screen and stage roles across over 60 years. Born in London, he began his acting career as a child in his n ...

as Jimmy * Teddy Brown as Charlie "Slim Charlie" * Bertha Belmore as Tiara Lady * George Merritt as Patrolman * Roy Emerton as John Benjamin * Leonard Sharp as Convict * Garry Marsh as Johnson

References

External links

*
Analysis of ''Convict 99'' as a prison movie

{{DEFAULTSORT:Convict 99 1938 films 1938 comedy films 1930s British films 1930s English-language films British black-and-white films British comedy films English-language comedy films Films directed by Marcel Varnel Films set in Devon Films set in London Films with screenplays by Marriott Edgar Gainsborough Pictures films Prison comedy films