''Meet Me Tonight'' is a 1952 omnibus 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 ...

adapted from three one act plays by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

: ''

Red Peppers ''Red Peppers'', described as "an interlude with music", is a short comic play in two scenes by Noël Coward. It is one of ten short plays that make up ''Tonight at 8.30'', a cycle written to be performed in groups of three plays across three e ...

'', ''

Fumed Oak Ammonia fuming is a wood finishing process that darkens wood and brings out the grain pattern. It consists of exposing the wood to fumes from a strong aqueous solution of ammonium hydroxide which reacts with the tannins in the wood. The process ...

'' and ''

Ways and Means A ways and means committee is a government body that is charged with reviewing and making recommendations for government budgets. Because the raising of revenue is vital to carrying out governmental operations, such a committee is tasked with fi ...

''; which are part of his '' Tonight at 8.30'' play cycle. The film was released as ''Tonight at 8:30'' in the U.S. It was directed by

Anthony Pelissier Harry Anthony Compton Pelissier (27 July 1912 – 2 April 1988) was an English actor, screenwriter, producer and director. Biography Pelissier was born in Barnet, north London, and came from a theatrical family. His parents were the theatr ...

and starred

Valerie Hobson Babette Louisa Valerie Hobson (14 April 1917 – 13 November 1998) was a British actress whose film career spanned the 1930s to the early 1950s. Her second husband was John Profumo, a British government minister who became the subject of the Pro ...

Nigel Patrick Nigel Dennis Patrick Wemyss-Gorman (2 May 1912 – 21 September 1981) was an English actor and stage director born into a theatrical family. During the late 1940s and 1950s, he became known as a debonair leading man in British films, though he ...

Stanley Holloway Stanley Augustus Holloway (1 October 1890 – 30 January 1982) was an English actor, comedian, singer and monologist. He was famous for his comic and character roles Stanley Holloway on stage and screen, on stage and screen, especially t ...

, Ted Ray and Jack Warner.

Plot

In "The Red Peppers", a husband and wife song and dance team (

Kay Walsh Kathleen Walsh (15 November 1911 – 16 April 2005) was an English actress, dancer, and screenwriter. Her film career prospered after she met her future husband, film director David Lean, with whom she worked on productions such as ''In Which We ...

, Ted Ray) bicker with each other, another performer (

Martita Hunt Martita Edith Hunt (30 January 190013 June 1969) was an Argentine-born British theatre and film actress. She had a dominant stage presence and played a wide range of powerful characters. She is best remembered for her performance as Miss Havis ...

), and the theatre manager (

Frank Pettingell Frank Edmund George Pettingell (1 January 1891 – 17 February 1966) was an English actor. Pettingell was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, and educated at Manchester University. During the First World War he served with the King's Liverpool R ...

). In "Fumed Oak", a middle-aged man (

) finally has enough of his wife, daughter, and mother-in-law (

Betty Ann Davies Betty Ann Davies (24 December 1910 – 14 May 1955) was a British stage and film actress active from the 1920s to the 1950s. Davies made her first stage appearance at the Palladium in a revue in 1924. The following year she joined Cochran's Yo ...

Dorothy Gordon Dorothy Gordon may refer to: * Dorothy Gordon (British actress) (1924-2013) * Dorothy Gordon (Australian actress) Dorothy Hetty Fosbery Jenner (1 March 1891 – 24 March 1985), also known as Dorothy Gordon, was an Australian actress, journali ...

, and

Mary Merrall Mary Merrall (5 January 1890 – 31 August 1973), born Elsie Lloyd, was an English actress whose career of over 60 years encompassed stage, film and television work. Stage career Merrall's stage career started in her teens, making her first stag ...

respectively). Having saved enough money secretly, he announces to his stunned family that he is leaving, never to see them again. In the final segment, "Ways and Means", a husband (

) and his wife (

) wonder what they will do now that he has gambled away their money, leaving little to pay their debts, especially to Olive (

Jessie Royce Landis Jessie Royce Landis (born Jessie Medbury; November 25, 1896 – February 2, 1972) was an American actress. Her name is also seen as Jesse Royce-Landis. She remains perhaps best-known for her mother roles in the Hitchcock films '' To Catch a Thi ...

). They pawn their last few valuable possessions, hoping to win enough in the casino. However, Olive takes the seat the husband was waiting for and proceeds to win a great deal of money. When she gets up, he takes his rightful place and loses all he has. That night, the couple awake to find Olive's chauffeur, Murdoch ( Jack Warner), trying to steal from them. After laughing at him (since they have nothing worth the effort), the wife proposes he rob from his employer and split the money with them. Murdoch takes Olive's winnings, but double crosses the couple, only to end up caught by the police.

Cast

*Lily Pepper -

*George Pepper - Ted Ray *Mabel Grace -

*Mr. Edwards -

*Bert Bentley -

Bill Fraser William Simpson Fraser (5 June 1908 – 9 September 1987) was a Scottish actor who appeared on stage, screen and television for many years. In 1986 he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance for his stage role in the play '' ...

*Stage Manager -

Toke Townley John Antony Townley (6 November 1912 – 27 September 1984), known professionally as Toke Townley, was an English actor. Biography Townley was born on 6 November 1912 at Great Dunmow, Essex; his father was a vicar. His first name, "John", was ...

*Call-Boy - Ian Wilson *Performing Dog Act - Frank's Fox Terriers *Chinese Jugglers - The Young China Troupe *Henry Gow -

*Doris Gow -

*Mrs. Rocket (Grandma) -

*Elsie -

*Stella Cartwright -

*Toby Cartwright -

*Murdoch - Jack Warner *Olive -

*Chaps -

Michael Trubshawe Michael Trubshawe (7 December 1905 – 21 March 1985) was a British actor and former officer in the Highland Light Infantry Regiment of the British Army. Trubshawe was very close friends with fellow British actor David Niven, serving with h ...

*Nanny -

Mary Jerrold Mary Jerrold (4 December 1877 – 3 March 1955) was an English actress. She was married to actor Hubert Harben, and mother of actress Joan Harben and celebrity chef Philip Harben. She made her London stage debut as Prudence Dering in ''Mary Pen ...

*Elena -

Yvonne Furneaux Yvonne Furneaux (born Elisabeth Yvonne Scatcherd; 11 May 1926 – 5 July 2024) was a French-British actress. A graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, she worked with notable filmmakers like Peter Brook, Federico Fellini, Roman Polanski, ...

*The Fence - Jacques Cey

Production

A very successful film, ''

Brief Encounter ''Brief Encounter'' is a 1945 British Romance film#Romantic drama, romantic drama film directed by David Lean from a screenplay by Noël Coward, based on his 1936 one-act play ''Still Life (play), Still Life''. The film stars Celia Johnson and ...

'' (1945), had been made from ''

Still Life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, human-m ...

'', one of the plays that made up '' Tonight at 8:30''. In July 1948,

Sydney Box Frank Sydney Box (29 April 1907 – 25 May 1983) was a British film producer and screenwriter, and brother of British film producer Betty Box. In 1940, he founded the documentary film company Verity Films with Jay Lewis. He produced and co- ...

, head of

Gainsborough Studios Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, east London. Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. The comp ...

bought the rights to film '' The Astonished Heart'' from '' Tonight at 8:30'' which resulted in a 1950 film. In late 1948 Box discussed with Coward making a film called ''Tonight at 8:30'' consisting of three plays from the series: ''

'' with

Kathleen Harrison Kathleen Harrison (23 February 1892 – 7 December 1995) was a prolific English character actress best remembered for her role as Mrs. Huggett (opposite Jack Warner and Petula Clark) in a trio of British post-war comedies about a working-cla ...

and Jack Warner, ''

Family Album Family album may refer to: * A photo album containing family photographs Literature * ''Family Album'' (novel), a 1985 novel by Danielle Steel * ''Family Album'' (play) a 1935 short play by Noël Coward Music * ''Family Album'' (David Allan C ...

'' with

Margaret Leighton Margaret Leighton (26 February 1922 – 13 January 1976) was an English actress. Known for her work on stage and screen, her film appearances included Anthony Asquith's ''The Winslow Boy'' (her first credited film role), Alfred Hitchcock's ' ...

and

Graham Payn Graham Payn (25 April 1918 – 4 November 2005) was a South African-born English actor and singer, also known for being the life partner of the playwright Noël Coward. Beginning as a boy soprano, Payn later made a career as a singer and actor i ...

, and ''

'' with

Cicely Courtneidge Dame Esmerelda Cicely Courtneidge (1 April 1893 – 26 April 1980) was an Australian-born British actress, comedian and singer. The daughter of the producer and playwright Robert Courtneidge, she was appearing in his productions in the West End ...

and

Jack Hulbert John Norman Hulbert (24 April 189225 March 1978) was a British actor, director, screenwriter and singer, specializing primarily in comedy productions, and often working alongside his wife (Dame) Cicely Courtneidge. Biography Born in Ely, C ...

. This film was not made. In June 1951 Coward discussed the project with Sydney Box again. Rights to the plays passed to the

Rank Organisation The Rank Organisation (founded as the J. Arthur Rank Organisation) is a British entertainment conglomerate founded in 1937 by industrialist J. Arthur Rank. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the Uni ...

which had made several successful anthology movies, notably ''

Quartet In music, a quartet (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations of four instruments in chamber music is the string quartet. String quar ...

'', ''

Encore An encore is an additional performance given by performers at the conclusion of a show or concert, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford Universi ...

'' and ''

Trio Trio may refer to: Music Groups * Trio (music), an ensemble of three performers, or a composition for such an ensemble ** Jazz trio, pianist, double bassist, drummer ** Minuet and trio, a form in classical music ** String trio, a group of three ...

''. Producer Tony Havelock Allen later recalled the project as "just to have something to do, more or less." The movie was financed through the

British Film-Makers British Film-Makers (BFM) was a short lived production scheme that operated in Britain in the early 1950s as a co operative venture between the Rank Organisation and the National Film Finance Corporation (NFFC). Its notable films included ''The Card ...

scheme where Rank provided 70% of the budget and the balance coming from the National Film Finance Corporation. Filming took place in March 1952 at Pinewood Studios. Havelock-Allen said director Anthony Pelissier "had many different talents but none of them big enough to make a real impact. Look at '' The Rocking Horse Winner'' — he certainly had talent but he never got enough chances. He was a difficult man but, then, so was the man who made ''

Kind Hearts and Coronets ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' is a 1949 British crime film, crime black comedy film directed by Robert Hamer. It features Dennis Price, Joan Greenwood, Valerie Hobson and Alec Guinness; Guinness plays eight characters. The plot is loosely based ...

'', yet that didn’t stop him from being a great director. Havelock Allen said, "Noél was rather unkind about" the film "but he made what I think was a valid point: he said that the point of the ‘Red Peppers’ segment was to spend an evening seeing Noél Coward and Gertie Lawrence not playing Noél Coward and Gertie Lawrence, that is the fun; that the moment you do one of these little plays for real, they don’t exist."

Reception

Box office

The film was not a success at the box office and earned billings of £97,000.

Critical reception

''Variety'' called it "somewhat dated entertainment" in which "all three items have been skillfully directed." ''The Guardian'' called it "a disappointment" although "passable popular entertainment." ''The Daily Telegraph'' declared "nobody dazzles in the film, and the material, seen in a cold light, seemed thin, even dull." ''Filmink'' called it "a disaster, poorly directed, adapted, cast and acted – we don’t think anyone liked it, then or now, and it was a flop." ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote, "''Tonight at 8:30'' is, in short, a varied entertainment, short on excitement but funny and trenchant enough for many tastes." Coward saw the film in September 1952 and described it in his diary as "absolutely awful - vilely directed and, with one or two minor exceptions, abominably acted."Coward (2000), p 199. Entry dated 12 September 1952.

References

Notes

External links

* {{Noël Coward musicals 1952 films 1952 comedy films British anthology films British films based on plays Films shot at Pinewood Studios Films directed by Anthony Pelissier British comedy films Films produced by Anthony Havelock-Allan 1950s English-language films 1950s British films