Whisky Galore! (film)
Encyclopedia
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. The plot deals with the attempts of Scottish islanders to take advantage of an unexpected windfall, despite opposition from British authorities. It starred Basil Radford
, Bruce Seton
, Joan Greenwood
and Gordon Jackson
. This was Alexander Mackendrick
's directorial debut.
Mackenzie also wrote a sequel, Rockets Galore!, which was filmed by the Rank Organisation
in 1957
. An attempt was made to produce a remake of the film between 2004 and 2006.
The original film has been digitally restored and re-released to UK cinemas (July 29 2011), along with other classic Ealing comedies.
are largely unaffected by wartime rationing...that is until the supply of whisky
runs out in 1943. Then gloom descends on the disconsolate natives.
In the midst of this catastrophe, English Sergeant Odd (Bruce Seton
) returns on leave to court Peggy (Joan Greenwood
), daughter of storekeeper Joseph Macroon (Wylie Watson
). Meanwhile, Macroon's other daughter, Catriona (Gabrielle Blunt), has just got engaged to meek schoolteacher George Campbell (Gordon Jackson), though his stern, domineering mother (Jean Cadell
) refuses to give her approval.
Things take an unexpected turn for the better when the freighter S.S. Cabinet Minister runs aground in heavy fog late one night and begins to sink. The Biffer (Morland Graham) and Sammy MacCodrun (John Gregson
) row out to investigate and are ecstatic to learn from its departing crew that the cargo consists of 50,000 cases of whisky.
Captain Paul Waggett (Basil Radford), the stuffy English commander of the local Home Guard
, orders Odd to guard the cargo, but Macroon casually remarks that, by longstanding custom, a man cannot marry without hosting a party in which whisky must be served. Taking the hint, the sergeant allows himself to be "overpowered", and the locals manage to offload many cases before the ship goes down. MacCodrun persuades Campbell to participate, though he had been sent to his room by his mother for a prior transgression. This proves fortunate, as Campbell rescues the Biffer when he is trapped in the sinking freighter. The whisky also fortifies teetotaller Campbell's courage enough so he can stand up to his mother regarding Catriona.
A battle of wits ensues between Waggett, who wants to confiscate the salvaged cargo, and the wily islanders. Waggett brings in Macroon's old government nemesis, Mr. Farquharson (Henry Mollison), and his men to search for the whisky, but the forewarned islanders manage to hide the bottles in various ingenious places, including ammunition cases which Waggett ships off-island. When this is discovered, Waggett is recalled to the mainland to explain himself, leaving the Scots triumphant.
in 1948. The summer of 1948 brought heavy rain and gales, and the shoot ran five weeks over its planned 10-week schedule while the budget more than doubled. The first cut of the resulting footage did not please Ealing studio head Michael Balcon
, but Charles Crichton
stepped in to re-edit it.
Glasgow-raised director Mackendrick sympathised with the pompous, high-minded, but spoilsport attempts of Waggett to foil the looting. Mackendrick later said: "I began to realise that the most Scottish character in Whisky Galore! is Waggett the Englishman. He is the only Calvinist, puritan figure - and all the other characters aren't Scots at all: they're Irish!"
, both the novel and the film were called Tight Little Island, as a ban existed at the time on using the names of alcoholic drinks in titles.
In France
, the movie was retitled Whisky à Go-Go, after the famous Paris
discothèque, which had opened two years before.
film, Trainspotting
, became a major UK hit.
A television commercial for Tennent's Lager also parodied the film.
1949 in film
The year 1949 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello...
Ealing comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
based on the novel of the same name by Compton MacKenzie
Compton Mackenzie
Sir Compton Mackenzie, OBE was a writer and a Scottish nationalist.-Background:Compton Mackenzie was born in West Hartlepool, England, into a theatrical family of Mackenzies, but many of whose members used Compton as their stage surname, starting with his grandfather Henry Compton, a well-known...
. Both the movie and the novel are based on the real-life 1941 shipwreck of the S.S. Politician
SS Politician
The SS Politician was an 8000-ton cargo ship owned by T & J Harrison of Liverpool. It left Liverpool on 3 February 1941, bound for Kingston, Jamaica and New Orleans with a cargo including 28,000 cases of malt whisky. The ship sank near the island of Eriskay in the Outer Hebrides, off the west...
near the island of Eriskay
Eriskay
Eriskay , from the Old Norse for "Eric's Isle", is an island and community council area of the Outer Hebrides in northern Scotland. It lies between South Uist and Barra and is connected to South Uist by a causeway which was opened in 2001. In the same year Eriskay became the ferry terminal for...
and the unauthorized taking of its cargo of whisky. The plot deals with the attempts of Scottish islanders to take advantage of an unexpected windfall, despite opposition from British authorities. It starred Basil Radford
Basil Radford
Basil Radford 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...
, Bruce Seton
Bruce Seton
Major Sir Bruce Lovat Seton of Abercorn, 11th Baronet , better known as Bruce Seton, was a British actor and soldier....
, Joan Greenwood
Joan Greenwood
Joan Greenwood was an English actress. Born in Chelsea, she studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her husky voice, coupled with her slow, precise elocution, was her trademark...
and Gordon Jackson
Gordon Jackson (actor)
Gordon Cameron Jackson, OBE was a Scottish Emmy Award-winning actor best remembered for his roles as the butler Angus Hudson in Upstairs, Downstairs and George Cowley, the head of CI5, in The Professionals....
. This was Alexander Mackendrick
Alexander Mackendrick
Alexander Mackendrick was a Scottish American director and teacher. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts and later moved to Scotland...
's directorial debut.
Mackenzie also wrote a sequel, Rockets Galore!, which was filmed by the Rank Organisation
Rank Organisation
The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment company formed during 1937 and absorbed in 1996 by The Rank Group Plc. It was the largest and most vertically-integrated film company in Britain, owning production, distribution and exhibition facilities....
in 1957
1957 in film
The year 1957 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 21 - The movie Jailhouse Rock, starring Elvis Presley, opens.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue-Awards:...
. An attempt was made to produce a remake of the film between 2004 and 2006.
The original film has been digitally restored and re-released to UK cinemas (July 29 2011), along with other classic Ealing comedies.
Plot
The inhabitants of the isolated Scottish island of Todday in the Outer HebridesOuter Hebrides
The Outer Hebrides also known as the Western Isles and the Long Island, is an island chain off the west coast of Scotland. The islands are geographically contiguous with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland...
are largely unaffected by wartime rationing...that is until the supply of whisky
Whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
runs out in 1943. Then gloom descends on the disconsolate natives.
In the midst of this catastrophe, English Sergeant Odd (Bruce Seton
Bruce Seton
Major Sir Bruce Lovat Seton of Abercorn, 11th Baronet , better known as Bruce Seton, was a British actor and soldier....
) returns on leave to court Peggy (Joan Greenwood
Joan Greenwood
Joan Greenwood was an English actress. Born in Chelsea, she studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her husky voice, coupled with her slow, precise elocution, was her trademark...
), daughter of storekeeper Joseph Macroon (Wylie Watson
Wylie Watson
Wylie Watson was a British actor. Among his best known roles were those of "Mr Memory", an amazing man who commits "50 new facts to his memory every day" in Alfred Hitchcock's 1935 film The 39 Steps, and wily storekeeper Joseph Macroon in the Ealing comedy Whisky Galore!...
). Meanwhile, Macroon's other daughter, Catriona (Gabrielle Blunt), has just got engaged to meek schoolteacher George Campbell (Gordon Jackson), though his stern, domineering mother (Jean Cadell
Jean Cadell
Jean Cadell was a Scottish character actress.Born in Edinburgh, she performed in the cinema and on the stage. One of her best known cinema roles was in the Ealing Studios comedy Whisky Galore! . She once performed opposite W.C. Fields in Hollywood, cast as Mrs...
) refuses to give her approval.
Things take an unexpected turn for the better when the freighter S.S. Cabinet Minister runs aground in heavy fog late one night and begins to sink. The Biffer (Morland Graham) and Sammy MacCodrun (John Gregson
John Gregson
John Gregson was an English actor.He was born Harold Thomas Gregson, of Irish descent, and grew up in Wavertree, Liverpool, where he was educated at Greenbank Road primary school, later St Francis Xavier School...
) row out to investigate and are ecstatic to learn from its departing crew that the cargo consists of 50,000 cases of whisky.
Captain Paul Waggett (Basil Radford), the stuffy English commander of the local Home Guard
British Home Guard
The Home Guard was a defence organisation of the British Army during the Second World War...
, orders Odd to guard the cargo, but Macroon casually remarks that, by longstanding custom, a man cannot marry without hosting a party in which whisky must be served. Taking the hint, the sergeant allows himself to be "overpowered", and the locals manage to offload many cases before the ship goes down. MacCodrun persuades Campbell to participate, though he had been sent to his room by his mother for a prior transgression. This proves fortunate, as Campbell rescues the Biffer when he is trapped in the sinking freighter. The whisky also fortifies teetotaller Campbell's courage enough so he can stand up to his mother regarding Catriona.
A battle of wits ensues between Waggett, who wants to confiscate the salvaged cargo, and the wily islanders. Waggett brings in Macroon's old government nemesis, Mr. Farquharson (Henry Mollison), and his men to search for the whisky, but the forewarned islanders manage to hide the bottles in various ingenious places, including ammunition cases which Waggett ships off-island. When this is discovered, Waggett is recalled to the mainland to explain himself, leaving the Scots triumphant.
Cast
- Basil RadfordBasil RadfordBasil Radford 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...
as Captain Paul Waggett - Catherine LaceyCatherine LaceyCatherine Lacey was an English actress who made her film debut in 1938 as the secretive nun who wears high heels in the Alfred Hitchcock film The Lady Vanishes . She was an established stage character player before she was 30...
as Mrs. Waggett - Bruce SetonBruce SetonMajor Sir Bruce Lovat Seton of Abercorn, 11th Baronet , better known as Bruce Seton, was a British actor and soldier....
as Sergeant Odd - Joan GreenwoodJoan GreenwoodJoan Greenwood was an English actress. Born in Chelsea, she studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her husky voice, coupled with her slow, precise elocution, was her trademark...
as Peggy Macroon - Wylie WatsonWylie WatsonWylie Watson was a British actor. Among his best known roles were those of "Mr Memory", an amazing man who commits "50 new facts to his memory every day" in Alfred Hitchcock's 1935 film The 39 Steps, and wily storekeeper Joseph Macroon in the Ealing comedy Whisky Galore!...
as Joseph Macroon - Gabrielle Blunt as Catriona Macroon
- Gordon JacksonGordon Jackson (actor)Gordon Cameron Jackson, OBE was a Scottish Emmy Award-winning actor best remembered for his roles as the butler Angus Hudson in Upstairs, Downstairs and George Cowley, the head of CI5, in The Professionals....
as George Campbell - Jean CadellJean CadellJean Cadell was a Scottish character actress.Born in Edinburgh, she performed in the cinema and on the stage. One of her best known cinema roles was in the Ealing Studios comedy Whisky Galore! . She once performed opposite W.C. Fields in Hollywood, cast as Mrs...
as Mrs. Campbell - James Robertson JusticeJames Robertson JusticeJames Robertson Justice was a popular British character actor in British films of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.-Biography:...
as Dr. Maclaren - Morland GrahamMorland GrahamMorland Graham was a British film actor.Married to Elsie Cole in 1926.-Selected filmography:* Man of the Moment * Moscow Nights * Get Off My Foot * Where's Sally?...
as the Biffer - John GregsonJohn GregsonJohn Gregson was an English actor.He was born Harold Thomas Gregson, of Irish descent, and grew up in Wavertree, Liverpool, where he was educated at Greenbank Road primary school, later St Francis Xavier School...
as Sammy MacCodrun - James Woodburn as Roderick MacRurie
- James AndersonJames Anderson- Arts :*James K Anderson , American actor*James Anderson , British actor*James Arthur Anderson , American writer*James Anderson , American television writer...
as Old Hector - Jameson ClarkJameson ClarkJameson Clark was a Scottish character actor who appeared in 22 films and made many appearances on television.-Career:...
as Constable Macrae - Duncan Macrae as Angus MacCormac
- Mary MacNeil as Mrs. McCormac
- Norman Macowan as Captain MacPhee (as Norman MacOwan)
- Alastair Hunter as Captain MacKechnie
- Henry MollisonHenry MollisonHenry Mollison was a British film actor. He was the brother of the actor Clifford Mollison.-Selected filmography:* Balaclava * Knowing Men * Third Time Lucky * The Face at the Window...
as Mr. Farquharson - Frank Webster as First Mate
- Compton MacKenzieCompton MackenzieSir Compton Mackenzie, OBE was a writer and a Scottish nationalist.-Background:Compton Mackenzie was born in West Hartlepool, England, into a theatrical family of Mackenzies, but many of whose members used Compton as their stage surname, starting with his grandfather Henry Compton, a well-known...
as Captain Buncher - Finlay CurrieFinlay CurrieFinlay Jefferson Currie was a Scottish actor of stage, screen and television.Currie was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1878. His acting career began on the stage. He and his wife Maude Courtney did a song and dance act in the US in the 1890s. He made his first film in 1931...
as the narrator (uncredited) - A.E. Matthews as Colonel Linsey-Woolsey (uncredited)
Production
The film was shot on the island of BarraBarra
The island of Barra is a predominantly Gaelic-speaking island, and apart from the adjacent island of Vatersay, to which it is connected by a causeway, is the southernmost inhabited island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland.-Geography:The 2001 census showed that the resident population was 1,078...
in 1948. The summer of 1948 brought heavy rain and gales, and the shoot ran five weeks over its planned 10-week schedule while the budget more than doubled. The first cut of the resulting footage did not please Ealing studio head Michael Balcon
Michael Balcon
Sir Michael Elias Balcon was an English film producer, known for his work with Ealing Studios.-Background:...
, but 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...
stepped in to re-edit it.
Glasgow-raised director Mackendrick sympathised with the pompous, high-minded, but spoilsport attempts of Waggett to foil the looting. Mackendrick later said: "I began to realise that the most Scottish character in Whisky Galore! is Waggett the Englishman. He is the only Calvinist, puritan figure - and all the other characters aren't Scots at all: they're Irish!"
Differences from the novel
The plot underwent some modification and condensation from the novel, with a lot of the background removed; in particular, the two islands were merged into the single island of Todday and some religious issues were left out.Alternate film titles
In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, both the novel and the film were called Tight Little Island, as a ban existed at the time on using the names of alcoholic drinks in titles.
In France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the movie was retitled Whisky à Go-Go, after the famous Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
discothèque, which had opened two years before.
Parodies
The film was parodied in the TV series Fast Show as "Heroin Galore". The cargo in this version consists of pure heroin. This was shortly after the Danny BoyleDanny Boyle
Daniel "Danny" Boyle is an English filmmaker and producer. He is best known for his work on films such as Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours, 28 Days Later, Sunshine and Trainspotting. For Slumdog Millionaire, Boyle won numerous awards in 2008, including the Academy Award for Best Director...
film, Trainspotting
Trainspotting (film)
Trainspotting is a 1996 British satirical/drama film directed by Danny Boyle based on the novel of the same name by Irvine Welsh. The movie follows a group of heroin addicts in a late 1980s economically depressed area of Edinburgh and their passage through life...
, became a major UK hit.
A television commercial for Tennent's Lager also parodied the film.
External links
- Whiskey galore Britmovie British movie community
- Whisky Galore! at screenonline
- Fast Show- Heroin Galore