Ealing Comedies
Encyclopedia
For the film Ealing Comedy, see Ealing Comedy (film)
.
The Ealing Comedies were a series of film comedies produced by Ealing Studios
during the period 1947 to 1957.
Hue and Cry
in 1947 is generally considered to be the first of the Ealing Comedies, and Barnacle Bill the last in 1957, although some list Davy
as the last. Directors were Alexander Mackendrick
, Charles Crichton
, Robert Hamer
, Charles Frend
, Anthony Pelissier
and Henry Cornelius
. Despite their synonymous association with Ealing Studios the films made up only a tenth of the films produced by the studios. A similar situation occurred with the Gainsborough melodramas
at a studio
which also produced many comedies.
Notable actors who became prolific in these films included Stanley Holloway
, Alec Guinness
and Alistair Sim.
Ealing Comedy (film)
Ealing Comedy is a British 2008 comedy film, written by John Croker and directed by Neville Raschid. It was premiered at the Ealing Empire on 18 March 2008.-Plot:...
.
The Ealing Comedies were a series of film comedies produced by Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever since...
during the period 1947 to 1957.
Hue and Cry
Hue and Cry (film)
Hue and Cry is a British film directed by Charles Crichton and starring Alastair Sim, Harry Fowler and Joan Dowling.It is generally considered to be the first of the "Ealing comedies", although it is better characterised as a thriller for children...
in 1947 is generally considered to be the first of the Ealing Comedies, and Barnacle Bill the last in 1957, although some list Davy
Davy (film)
Davy is a 1958 British comedy-drama film directed by Michael Relph and starring Harry Secombe, Alexander Knox and Ron Randell. It was the last comedy to be made by Ealing Studios.-Plot:...
as the last. Directors were Alexander Mackendrick
Alexander Mackendrick
Alexander Mackendrick was a Scottish American director and teacher. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and later moved to Scotland...
, Charles Crichton
Charles Crichton
Charles Crichton was an English film director and film editor. He became best known for directing comedies produced at Ealing Studios...
, Robert Hamer
Robert Hamer
Robert James Hamer was a British film director and screenwriter. He was the son of the actor Gerald Hamer ....
, Charles Frend
Charles Frend
Charles Frend was an English film director.Charles Frend started his career at British International Pictures in 1931 and after editing Hitchcock's Waltzes from Vienna moved to Gaumont British Pictures in 1933 where he worked as an editor on Alfred Hitchcock's movies Secret Agent , Sabotage and...
, Anthony Pelissier
Anthony Pelissier
Harry Anthony Compton Pelissier was an English actor, screenwriter, producer and director.-Biography:Pelissier was born in Barnet and came from a theatrical family. His parents were the theatre producer H. G. Pelissier and the distinguished actress Fay Compton...
and Henry Cornelius
Henry Cornelius
Henry Cornelius was a South African-born film director, producer and screenwriter. He directed five films between 1949 and 1958.-Biography:...
. Despite their synonymous association with Ealing Studios the films made up only a tenth of the films produced by the studios. A similar situation occurred with the Gainsborough melodramas
Gainsborough melodramas
The Gainsborough melodramas were a sequence of films produced by the British film studio Gainsborough Pictures during the 1940s which conformed to a melodramatic style. The melodramas were not a film series but an unrelated sequence of films which had similar themes and frequently recurring actors...
at a studio
Gainsborough Pictures
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, London. Gainsborough Studios were active between 1924 and 1951. Built as a power station for the Great Northern & City Railway it...
which also produced many comedies.
Notable actors who became prolific in these films included Stanley Holloway
Stanley Holloway
Stanley Augustus Holloway, OBE was an English stage and film actor, comedian, singer, poet and monologist. He was famous for his comic and character roles on stage and screen, especially that of Alfred P. Doolittle in My Fair Lady...
, Alec Guinness
Alec Guinness
Sir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE was an English actor. He was featured in several of the Ealing Comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets in which he played eight different characters. He later won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River Kwai...
and Alistair Sim.
Ealing Comedies
- Hue and CryHue and Cry (film)Hue and Cry is a British film directed by Charles Crichton and starring Alastair Sim, Harry Fowler and Joan Dowling.It is generally considered to be the first of the "Ealing comedies", although it is better characterised as a thriller for children...
(1947) - Another ShoreAnother ShoreAnother Shore is a 1948 Ealing Studios comedy film/tragedy filmed in Ireland. It stars Robert Beatty as Gulliver Shields, an Irish customs official who dreams of living on a South Sea island; particularly Rarotonga...
(1948) - Passport to PimlicoPassport to PimlicoPassport to Pimlico is a 1949 British comedy film made by Ealing Studios and starred Stanley Holloway, Margaret Rutherford, and Hermione Baddeley. It was directed by Henry Cornelius....
(1949) - Whisky Galore!Whisky Galore! (film)Whisky Galore! was a 1949 Ealing comedy film based on the novel of the same name by Compton MacKenzie. Both the movie and the novel are based on the real-life 1941 shipwreck of the S.S. Politician near the island of Eriskay and the unauthorized taking of its cargo of whisky...
(1949) - Kind Hearts and CoronetsKind Hearts and CoronetsKind Hearts and Coronets is a 1949 British black comedy feature film. The plot is loosely based on the 1907 novel Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal by Roy Horniman, with the screenplay written by Robert Hamer and John Dighton and the film directed by Hamer...
(1949) - A Run for Your MoneyA Run for Your MoneyA Run for Your Money is a 1949 Ealing Studios comedy film starring Donald Houston and Meredith Edwards as two Welshmen visiting London for the first time...
(1949) - The MagnetThe Magnet (1950 film)The Magnet is a 1950 Ealing Studios comedy film, and gave James Fox his first starring role. The story revolves around a young boy, Johnny Brent , whose deceptive obtaining of the eponymous magnet leads to confusion and ultimately him being hailed as a hero, but feeling guilt at his slyness...
(1950) - The Lavender Hill MobThe Lavender Hill MobThe Lavender Hill Mob is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T.E.B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass...
(1951) - The Man in the White SuitThe Man in the White SuitThe Man In The White Suit is a 1951 satirical comedy film made by Ealing Studios. It starred Alec Guinness, Joan Greenwood, and Cecil Parker, and was directed by Alexander Mackendrick. It followed a common Ealing Studios theme of the "common man" against the Establishment...
(1951) - The Titfield ThunderboltThe Titfield ThunderboltThe Titfield Thunderbolt is a 1953 British comedy film about a group of villagers trying to prevent British Railways from closing the fictional Titfield branch line. The film was written by T.E.B...
(1953) - Meet Mr. LuciferMeet Mr. LuciferMeet Mr. Lucifer is a black and white British comedy satire film released in 1953 starring Stanley Holloway. Filmed at Ealing Studios, London, The film is based on the play Beggar My Neighbour by Arnold Ridley -Plot:When Mr Pedelty leaves his firm, he is given a...
(1953) - The Love LotteryThe Love LotteryThe Love Lottery is a 1954 Ealing Studios comedy film, directed by Charles Crichton and starring David Niven as a celluloid heart-throb taking part in a "love lottery".-Cast:* David Niven as Rex Allerton* Peggy Cummins as Sally...
(1954) - The MaggieThe MaggieThe Maggie is a 1954 British comedy film. Directed by Alexander Mackendrick and written by William Rose, it is a story of a clash of cultures between a hard-driving American businessman and a wily Scottish captain.It was produced by Ealing Studios, at a time when rural Scotland was seen as a...
(1954) - The LadykillersThe LadykillersThe Ladykillers is a 1955 British black comedy film made by Ealing Studios. Directed by Alexander Mackendrick, it stars Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green, Jack Warner and Katie Johnson...
(1955) - Who Done It?Who Done It? (1956 film)Who Done It? is a 1956 British comedy film starring comedian Benny Hill.-Cast:* Benny Hill as Hugo Dill* Belinda Lee as Frankie Mayne* David Kossoff as Zacco* Garry Marsh as Detective Inspector Hancock* George Margo as Barakov...
(1956) - Barnacle Bill (1957)
- DavyDavy (film)Davy is a 1958 British comedy-drama film directed by Michael Relph and starring Harry Secombe, Alexander Knox and Ron Randell. It was the last comedy to be made by Ealing Studios.-Plot:...
(1957)