Say It With Flowers
Encyclopedia
Say It With Flowers is a 1934 British
musical film
directed by John Baxter
and starring Mary Clare
, Ben Field
and George Carney
. In London a group of shopkeepers hold a benefit concert
in a local pub to raise money for a woman to visit the seaside for her health. It is notable for the performances of several real music hall
stars Florrie Forde
, Charles Coborn
and Marie Kendall
.
in the Old Kent Road
. One of the stallholders, Kate, a flower seller
who many of the leading music hall
stars buy their flowers from. When Kate falls ill she is prescribed a stay at the seaside
to restore her health. However, she is too ill to work to pay for her visit. Her fellow stallholders rally round, and secretly organise a concert at a nearby pub to help raise the money. They approach all the great musical hall performers, who have used her stall from years, many from the golden era of musical hall. The concert is successfully staged and Kate is able to head to the seaside.
highlighted the film's genuine sympathy with the lives of the ordinary people it is portraying.
Cinema of the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has had a major influence on modern cinema. The first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by William Friese Greene, a British inventor, who patented the process in 1890. It is generally regarded that the British film industry...
musical film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
directed by John Baxter
John Baxter (director)
John Philip Baxter was a somewhat prolific British film-maker active from the 1930s to the late 1950s. During that time he produced, wrote, or directed dozens of films...
and starring Mary Clare
Mary Clare
Mary Clare was a British actress who performed in films, on the stage, and later on television.-Biography:...
, Ben Field
Ben Field
-Selected filmography:* Venetian Lovers * A South Sea Bubble * Caste * Sally in Our Alley * Jack's the Boy * Loyalties * Mrs. Dane's Defence * Say It with Flowers...
and George Carney
George Carney
George Carney was a British film actor.He worked in the Liverpool Cotton Exchange, in a furniture business, then in the Belfast shipping yards...
. In London a group of shopkeepers hold a benefit concert
Benefit concert
A benefit concert or charity concert is a concert, show or gala featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate humanitarian crisis. Such events raise both funds and public awareness to address the cause at...
in a local pub to raise money for a woman to visit the seaside for her health. It is notable for the performances of several real music hall
Music hall
Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
stars Florrie Forde
Florrie Forde
Florrie Forde , born Flora May Augusta Flannagan, was an Australian popular singer and entertainer. She was one of the greatest stars of the early 20th century music hall....
, Charles Coborn
Charles Coborn
Charles Coborn was a British music hall singer and comedian born in Stepney, east London.He was born Charles Whitton McCallum, and adopted his stage name from Coborn Road, near Mile End...
and Marie Kendall
Marie Kendall
Marie Kendall ; 1873–1964) was a British music hall comedienne and actress who had a successful career spanning 50 years.-Biography:Marie Kendall was born Mary Ann Florence Holyome on 27th July 1873 in Bethnal Green, London....
.
Synopsis
The film is set in a street marketStreet market
A street market is an outdoor market such as traditionally held in a market square or in a market town, and often held only on particular days of the week...
in the Old Kent Road
Old Kent Road
The Old Kent Road is a road in South East London, England and forms part of Watling Street, the Roman road which ran from Dover to Holyhead. The street is famous as the equal cheapest property on the London Monopoly board and as the only one in South London....
. One of the stallholders, Kate, a flower seller
Flower seller
A flower seller, normally a woman, traditionally sells flowers on the street. Often the flowers are carried, in a basket for example. The subject matter has been a favorite of artists. The profession has mostly died out in countries like the United Kingdom, but still exists in others such as India....
who many of the leading music hall
Music hall
Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
stars buy their flowers from. When Kate falls ill she is prescribed a stay at the seaside
Seaside
-Places:* Seaside, California* Seaside, Florida* Seaside, Oregon* A mostly undeveloped coastal area in Perth and Kinross called Seaside* Seaside, Queens, a section of Rockaway Beach in New York City* Seaside Heights, New Jersey...
to restore her health. However, she is too ill to work to pay for her visit. Her fellow stallholders rally round, and secretly organise a concert at a nearby pub to help raise the money. They approach all the great musical hall performers, who have used her stall from years, many from the golden era of musical hall. The concert is successfully staged and Kate is able to head to the seaside.
Reception
Picturegoer Weekly reviewed the film favourably observing "there is more entertainment in this unambitous film... than in many alleged super-productions". In his book The Age of the Dream Palace Jeffrey RichardsJeffrey Richards
Jeffrey Richards is a British historian.Educated at Jesus College, Cambridge, he is Professor of Cultural History at Lancaster University. A leading cultural historian and film critic, he is the author of over 15 books on British cultural history...
highlighted the film's genuine sympathy with the lives of the ordinary people it is portraying.
Cast
- Mary ClareMary ClareMary Clare was a British actress who performed in films, on the stage, and later on television.-Biography:...
- Kate Bishop - Ben FieldBen Field-Selected filmography:* Venetian Lovers * A South Sea Bubble * Caste * Sally in Our Alley * Jack's the Boy * Loyalties * Mrs. Dane's Defence * Say It with Flowers...
- Joe Bishop - George CarneyGeorge CarneyGeorge Carney was a British film actor.He worked in the Liverpool Cotton Exchange, in a furniture business, then in the Belfast shipping yards...
- Bill Woods - Mark DalyMark Daly (actor)Mark Daly was a British film actor.Mark Daly was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on 23 August 1887 and died 27 September 1957 in England. He made his first stage appearance in Swansea, Wales in 1906 and his first London engagement at the Shaftesbury Theatre six years later...
- Scotty MacDonald - Edgar DriverEdgar Driver-Selected filmography:* Say It With Flowers * The Admiral's Secret * Designing Women * Stepping Toes * Sunset in Vienna * The Agitator * The Grand Escapade * Private's Progress...
- Titch - Freddie Watts -Steve
- Edwin Ellis - Ted
- Wilson ColemanWilson ColemanWilson Coleman was a British actor born in 1875. Years active: 1891 to 1940.He started his stage career in 1891, playing juvenile and heavy parts. He worked with Barry Jackson for five years. He toured both North and South America as well as South Africa...
- Doctor - Roddy HughesRoddy HughesRoddy Hughes was a British film and television actor. He appeared in over 80 films between 1932 and 1961.-Selected filmography:* Say It With Flowers * Poison Pen * Saloon Bar...
- Sam, the Newspaper Seller - Florrie FordeFlorrie FordeFlorrie Forde , born Flora May Augusta Flannagan, was an Australian popular singer and entertainer. She was one of the greatest stars of the early 20th century music hall....
- Herself - Charles CobornCharles CobornCharles Coborn was a British music hall singer and comedian born in Stepney, east London.He was born Charles Whitton McCallum, and adopted his stage name from Coborn Road, near Mile End...
- Himself - Marie KendallMarie KendallMarie Kendall ; 1873–1964) was a British music hall comedienne and actress who had a successful career spanning 50 years.-Biography:Marie Kendall was born Mary Ann Florence Holyome on 27th July 1873 in Bethnal Green, London....
- Herself