BFI 75 Most Wanted
Encyclopedia
The BFI 75 Most Wanted is a list compiled by the British Film Institute
of their most sought-after British feature films not currently held in the BFI National Archive
, and classified as "missing, believed lost". The films chosen range from quota quickies and B-movies to lavish prestige productions of their day. The list includes lost works by major directors and those featuring top-name actors; also films which were top box-office successes in their time but have since disappeared, and works which are believed to be historically significant for some aspect of style, technique, subject matter or innovation.
The earliest film on the list dates from 1913, the latest from 1983. The 1930s is the most represented decade with 24 entries, followed by the 1920s (16) and the 1940s (14). Maurice Elvey
, with four films on the list, is the most represented director. Unsurprisingly, the "most wanted" Most Wanted of all is Alfred Hitchcock
's 1926 feature The Mountain Eagle
, described as "the Holy Grail of film historians".
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
of their most sought-after British feature films not currently held in the BFI National Archive
BFI National Archive
The BFI National Archive is a department of the British Film Institute, and one of the largest film archives in the world. It was originally set up as the National Film Library in 1935; its first curator was Ernest Lindgren. In 1955 its name became the National Film Archive, and in 1992, the...
, and classified as "missing, believed lost". The films chosen range from quota quickies and B-movies to lavish prestige productions of their day. The list includes lost works by major directors and those featuring top-name actors; also films which were top box-office successes in their time but have since disappeared, and works which are believed to be historically significant for some aspect of style, technique, subject matter or innovation.
The earliest film on the list dates from 1913, the latest from 1983. The 1930s is the most represented decade with 24 entries, followed by the 1920s (16) and the 1940s (14). Maurice Elvey
Maurice Elvey
Maurice Elvey was the most prolific film director in British history. He directed nearly 200 films between 1913 and 1957. During the silent film era he directed as many as twenty films per year....
, with four films on the list, is the most represented director. Unsurprisingly, the "most wanted" Most Wanted of all is Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's 1926 feature The Mountain Eagle
The Mountain Eagle
The Mountain Eagle is a British silent film, and Alfred Hitchcock's second as director following The Pleasure Garden.-Plot:The film is set in Kentucky. J. P. Pettigrew's wife died giving birth to his son Edward who was born a cripple. Pettigrew hates John Fulton who also loved Pettigrew's wife...
, described as "the Holy Grail of film historians".
Films (in chronological order)
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1913 | Maria Marten, or the Mystery of the Red Barn Maria Marten, or the Mystery of the Red Barn Maria Marten, or the Mystery of the Red Barn is a 1913 British silent drama film, based on the Red Barn Murder, directed by Maurice Elvey. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films.-Cast:*... |
Maurice Elvey Maurice Elvey Maurice Elvey was the most prolific film director in British history. He directed nearly 200 films between 1913 and 1957. During the silent film era he directed as many as twenty films per year.... |
From first year of Elvey's directorial career. Dramatisation of the notorious Red Barn Murder Red Barn Murder The Red Barn Murder was a notorious murder committed in Polstead, Suffolk, England, in 1827. A young woman, Maria Marten, was shot dead by her lover, William Corder. The two had arranged to meet at the Red Barn, a local landmark, before eloping to Ipswich. Maria was never heard from again... , filmed in the actual locations in which the events took place |
1914 | A Study in Scarlet A Study in Scarlet (1914 film) A Study in Scarlet is a 1914 silent drama film directed by George Pearson and starring James Bragington. It is based on the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle novel of the same name. It was the first film to feature Sherlock Holmes onscreen and is now considered to be lost.A film of the same name was released... |
George Pearson | Earliest British Sherlock Holmes feature |
1916 | Milestones Milestones (film) Milestones is a 1916 British silent drama film directed by Thomas Bentley. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films.-Cast:... |
Thomas Bentley Thomas Bentley Thomas Bentley was a British film director. He directed 68 films between 1912 and 1941. He directed three films in the early DeForest Phonofilm sound-on-film process, The Man in the Street , The Antidote , and Acci-Dental Treatment .Bentley was born in London and originally trained as an engineer,... |
Ambitious multi-generational family saga, over 2 hours long |
1919 | The First Men in the Moon The First Men in the Moon (1919 film) The First Men in the Moon is a black-and-white silent film from 1919, directed by Bruce Gordon and J.L.V. Leigh. The film is based on H. G. Wells' 1901 science fiction novel The First Men in the Moon. This, the 1919 version, is the original film; there have since been many other adaptations of the... |
J.L.V. Leigh | First direct H.G.Wells film adaptation |
1920 | The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss is a 1920 British silent comedy film directed by and starring Henry Edwards. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films... |
Henry Edwards Henry Edwards (actor) Henry Edwards was an English actor and film director. He appeared in 81 films between 1915 and 1952. He also directed 67 films between 1915 and 1937... |
|
1921 | The Adventures of Mr. Pickwick The Adventures of Mr. Pickwick The Adventures of Mr. Pickwick is a 1921 British silent comedy film directed by Thomas Bentley based on the novel The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens... |
Thomas Bentley | Early Dickens Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic... adaptation |
1921 | The Narrow Valley The Narrow Valley The Narrow Valley is a 1921 British silent drama film directed by Cecil Hepworth. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films.-Cast:... |
Cecil Hepworth Cecil Hepworth Cecil Milton Hepworth was an English film director, producer and screenwriter. He was among the founders of the British film industry and continued making films into the 1920s.... |
Starring Alma Taylor Alma Taylor - Life :Taylor was born in London. She made her first screen appearance as a child actor in the 1907 film His Daughter's Voice. She went on to appear in more than 150 film roles, appearing in a number of larger-budget films such as Shadow of Egypt which was shot on location in Egypt in 1924. Taylor... , highly praised for its location shots of the South Downs South Downs The South Downs is a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the east. It is bounded on its northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose... countryside |
1923 | Love, Life and Laughter | George Pearson | Acclaimed on release as "a screen classic" and "a masterpiece" |
1923 | Reveille Reveille (film) Reveille is a 1924 British silent drama film directed by George Pearson. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films.-Cast:* Betty Balfour - Mick... |
George Pearson | Socially significant World War I drama. Small segments believed to survive in private hands |
1923 | Woman to Woman Woman to Woman (1923 film) Woman to Woman is a 1923 British silent drama film directed by Graham Cutts, with Alfred Hitchcock as the assistant director. The film was adapted from the play Woman to Woman by Michael Morton.-Preservation status:... |
Graham Cutts Graham Cutts Graham Cutts was a British film director who was one of the leading British directors in the 1920s. His fellow director A. V. Bramble believed that Gainsborough Pictures had been built on the back of his work. His daughter was actress Patricia Cutts... |
Hitchcock as assistant director and uncredited screenwriter |
1924 | Lily of the Alley Lily of the Alley Lily of the Alley is a 1924 British silent film drama directed by Henry Edwards, who also starred in the film with his wife Chrissie White... |
Henry Edwards | Experimental silent without use of intertitles |
1924 | Who Is the Man? Who Is the Man? Who Is The Man? is a 1924 British silent film drama directed by Walter Summers. The film was based on the successful French play Daniel by Louis Verneuil and is notable as the first screen appearance of John Gielgud.-Plot:... |
Walter Summers Walter Summers Walter Summers was a British film director and screenwriter.-Biography:Born in Barnstaple to a family of actors, British motion picture director Walter Summers began his career in the family trade; his first contact with filmmaking was as an assistant to American director George Loane Tucker, who... |
Screen debut of John Gielgud John Gielgud Sir Arthur John Gielgud, OM, CH was an English actor, director, and producer. A descendant of the renowned Terry acting family, he achieved early international acclaim for his youthful, emotionally expressive Hamlet which broke box office records on Broadway in 1937... |
1926 | London London (1926 film) London is a British silent film, directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Dorothy Gish. The film was adapted by Wilcox from a short story by popular author Thomas Burke... |
Herbert Wilcox Herbert Wilcox Herbert Sydney Wilcox was a British film producer and director.-Early life:Wilcox's mother was from County Cork, Ireland, but he was born in Norwood and attended school in Brighton... |
Big-budget "Limehouse" picture starring Dorothy Gish Dorothy Gish Dorothy Elizabeth Gish was an American actress, and the younger sister of actress Lillian Gish.-Early life:... |
1926 | Mademoiselle from Armentieres Mademoiselle from Armentieres (film) Mademoiselle from Armentieres is a 1926 British World War I silent film drama, directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Estelle Brody and John Stuart. The film was Elvey's first collaboration with producer Victor Saville.-Plot:... |
Maurice Elvey | Highest-grossing British film of 1926. A little under one third is known to survive in fragments |
1926 | The Mountain Eagle The Mountain Eagle The Mountain Eagle is a British silent film, and Alfred Hitchcock's second as director following The Pleasure Garden.-Plot:The film is set in Kentucky. J. P. Pettigrew's wife died giving birth to his son Edward who was born a cripple. Pettigrew hates John Fulton who also loved Pettigrew's wife... |
Alfred Hitchcock Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood... |
The only lost Hitchcock feature film (his short An Elastic Affair An Elastic Affair An Elastic Affair was a 10-minute short comedy film directed by Alfred Hitchcock which features the two winners — Cyril Butcher as "the Boy" and Aileen Despard as "the Girl" — of a film acting scholarship sponsored by British film magazine Film Weekly.The film was shown on 19 January 1930 at a... is also lost), arguably the world's most sought-after lost film |
1927 | The Arcadians The Arcadians (film) The Arcadians is a 1927 British comedy film directed by Victor Saville and starring Ben Blue, Jeanne De Casalis and Vesta Sylva. It is an adaptation of the musical The Arcadians. It is considered a lost film and is on the BFI 75 Most Wanted list of missing films.-Cast:* Ben Blue - Simplicitas... |
Victor Saville Victor Saville Victor Saville was an English film director, producer and screenwriter. He directed 39 films between 1927 and 1954... |
Curiosity as to how a silent version was made of a popular stage musical |
1927 | The Story of the Flag | Anson Dyer | First full-length British animation |
1927 | Tip Toes Tip Toes (1927 film) Tip Toes is a 1927 British silent film comedy-drama, directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Dorothy Gish and Will Rogers. The film is a loose adaptation of the stage musical Tip-Toes, with the action transferred from Florida to London.-Plot:... |
Herbert Wilcox | Another Dorothy Gish vehicle, mauled by critics |
1929 | The Crooked Billet The Crooked Billet The Crooked Billet is a 1929 British drama film directed by Adrian Brunel and starring Madeleine Carroll, Carlyle Blackwell and Miles Mander.-Cast:* Carlyle Blackwell - Dietrich Hebburn* Madeleine Carroll - Joan Easton* Miles Mander - Guy Morrow... |
Adrian Brunel Adrian Brunel Adrian Brunel was an English film director and screenwriter. Brunel's directorial career started in the silent era, and reached its peak in the latter half of the 1920s... |
Starring Madeleine Carroll Madeleine Carroll Edith Madeleine Carroll was an English actress, popular in the 1930s and 1940s.-Early life:Carroll was born at 32 Herbert Street in West Bromwich, England. She graduated from the University of Birmingham, England with a B.A. degree... . May have been released in both silent and sound versions |
1929 | The Last Post The Last Post (film) The Last Post is a 1929 British silent film drama, directed by Dinah Shurey and starring John Longden and Frank Vosper. The film was the first solo directorial venture by Shurey, who was the only female producer and director working in the British film industry at the time... |
Dinah Shurey | Solo directorial debut of Britain's only female film director of this period |
1930 | Lord Richard in the Pantry Lord Richard in the Pantry Lord Richard in the Pantry is a 1930 British comedy film directed by Walter Forde and starring Richard Cooper, Dorothy Seacombe and Marjorie Hume. Lord Richard falls on hard times, and has to take a job as a butler... |
Walter Forde Walter Forde Walter Forde was a British actor, Screenwriter and Director. Born in Bradford, Yorkshire in 1896 he directed over fifty films between 1920 and 1949.-Silent era filmography:* The Wanderer * The Handyman ... |
|
1930 | School for Scandal School for Scandal (film) School for Scandal is a 1930 British comedy film directed by Thorold Dickinson and Maurice Elvey and starring Basil Gill, Madeleine Carroll and Ian Fleming. It is based on the play School for Scandal by Richard Brinsley Sheridan.-Cast:... |
Maurice Elvey | Only film shot in the abortive Raycol colour process. Only screened in black-and-white |
1930 | Too Many Crooks Too Many Crooks (1930 film) Too Many Crooks is a 1930 British comedy crime film directed by George King and starring Laurence Olivier, Dorothy Boyd and Arthur Stratton... |
George King George King (film director) George King was an English actors' agent, film director, producer and screenplay writer. He helmed several of Tod Slaughter's melodramas, including 1936's The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.-Career:... |
British film debut of Laurence Olivier Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright... |
1931 | Deadlock Deadlock (film) Deadlock is a 1931 British crime film directed by George King and starring Stewart Rome, Marjorie Hume and Warwick Ward.-Cast:* Stewart Rome as James Whitelaw* Marjorie Hume as Mrs Whitelaw* Warwick Ward as Markham Savage... |
George King | First British talkie to use a film set as its dramatic location |
1931 | Hobson's Choice Hobson's Choice (1931 film) Hobson's Choice is a 1931 British comedy drama film directed by Thomas Bentley and starring James Harcourt, Viola Lyel, Frank Pettingell and Herbert Lomas. A coarse bootshop owner is outraged when his eldest daughter decides to marry a meek cobbler... |
Thomas Bentley | Conflicting reports as to whether George Formby appeared in this film |
1931 | Lloyd of the C.I.D. | Henry MacRae Henry MacRae Henry Alexander MacRae was a Canadian film director, producer and screenwriter during the silent era, working on many film serials for Universal Studios... |
12-part sound serial, the only such ever made in Britain not targeted at a juvenile audience. Known to have been extant in 1977, but has since proved untraceable |
1931 | Two Crowded Hours Two Crowded Hours Two Crowded Hours is a 1931 British comedy drama film directed by Michael Powell. It was made as a Quota quickie and is the first film where Powell is credited as the director.-Plot:... |
Michael Powell Michael Powell (director) Michael Latham Powell was a renowned English film director, celebrated for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger... |
Powell's directorial debut, an unexpected box-office success |
1932 | Castle Sinister Castle Sinister Castle Sinister is a British horror film produced, written and directed by Widgey R. Newman. Very little is known of either the film or the director, although available information suggests Newman to have been something of a maverick in the British film industry of the time.The film was... |
Widgey R. Newman | Early British horror film, intriguing tagline "Mad doctor tries to put girl's brain into apeman's head" |
1932 | Men of Tomorrow | Leontine Sagan Leontine Sagan Leontine Sagan was an Austrian actress and theatre director.Born in Budapest, Sagan trained with Max Reinhardt. The first and most widely known of her two films is Mädchen in Uniform... |
Screen debut of Robert Donat Robert Donat Robert Donat was an English film and stage actor. He is best-known for his roles in Alfred Hitchcock's The 39 Steps and Goodbye, Mr... |
1933 | Counsel's Opinion Counsel's Opinion Counsel's Opinion is a 1933 British romantic comedy film starring Henry Kendall and Binnie Barnes. It was one of three films directed in Britain in the early 1930s by Canadian-American Allan Dwan and was an early production from Alexander Korda's London Films... |
Allan Dwan Allan Dwan Allan Dwan was a pioneering Canadian-born American motion picture director, producer and screenwriter.-Early life:... |
Early Alexander Korda Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda was a Hungarian-born British producer and film director. He was a leading figure in the British film industry, the founder of London Films and the owner of British Lion Films, a film distributing company.-Life and career:The elder brother of filmmakers Zoltán Korda and Vincent... production |
1933 | Yes, Mr. Brown | Jack Buchanan Jack Buchanan Walter John "Jack" Buchanan was a British theatre and film actor, singer, producer and director. He was known for three decades as the embodiment of the debonair man-about-town in the tradition of George Grossmith Jr., and was described by The Times as "the last of the knuts." He is best known in... |
Buchanan's first starring and directing role |
1934 | Badger's Green Badger's Green (1934 film) Badger's Green is a 1934 British comedy film directed by Adrian Brunel and starring Valerie Hobson, Bruce Lester, David Horne and Wally Patch. It was adapted from the 1930 play Badger's Green by R.C. Sheriff. A picturesque village is threatened with redevelopment by a speculative builder, leading... |
Adrian Brunel | First production credit of Anthony Havelock-Allan Anthony Havelock-Allan Sir Anthony James Allan Havelock-Allan, 4th Baronet was a prolific and successful British film producer and screenwriter whose credits included This Happy Breed, Blithe Spirit, the 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet and Ryan's Daughter.Havelock-Allan was born at the family home of Blackwell Grange... |
1934 | The Path of Glory The Path of Glory The Path of Glory is a 1934 British comedy film directed by Dallas Bower and starring Maurice Evans, Valerie Hobson, Felix Aylmer, Henry Daniell and Athole Stewart... |
Dallas Bower | Exceptionally sophisticated and polished quota quickie |
1934 | To Be a Lady To Be a Lady To Be a Lady is a 1934 British romance drama, directed and produced by George King, and starring Chili Bouchier and Bruce Lester. The film is the first screen editing credit of American film editor Elmo Williams.... |
George King | Only lost sound film starring Chili Bouchier Chili Bouchier Chili Bouchier , later known as Dorothy Bouchier, was a British film actress who achieved success during the silent film era, and went on to many screen appearances with the advent of sound films, before progressing to theatre later in her career.She made her first appearance as a child dancer at a... |
1935 | Murder at Monte Carlo Murder at Monte Carlo Murder at Monte Carlo is a 1934 crime film directed by Ralph Ince and starring Errol Flynn, Eve Gray, Paul Graetz and Molly Lamont. The film was Flynn's debut film in the UK... |
Ralph Ince Ralph Ince Ralph Ince , was an American film director, actor and screenwriter of the silent era. He directed 171 films between 1910 and 1937. He also appeared in 110 films between 1907 and 1937.... |
Screen debut of Errol Flynn Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Flynn was an Australian-born actor. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in Hollywood films, being a legend and his flamboyant lifestyle.-Early life:... |
1935 | The Price of a Song The Price of a Song The Price of a Song is a British crime film, directed by Michael Powell. The Price of a Song was one of 23 quota quickies directed by Powell between 1931 and 1936 and features a largely forgotten cast – only Felix Aylmer, here in a minor role, would go on to a significant film... |
Michael Powell | One of Powell's most favourably reviewed quota quickies |
1935 | The Public Life of Henry the Ninth The Public Life of Henry the Ninth The Public Life of Henry the Ninth is a British comedy film directed by Bernard Mainwaring and starring Leonard Henry, Betty Frankiss, and George Mozart.-Production background:... |
Bernerd Mainwaring | First-ever Hammer Films Hammer Film Productions Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later... production |
1936 | Educated Evans Educated Evans Educated Evans is a 1936 British comedy film, directed by William Beaudine and starring Max Miller. The film, set in the world of horse racing, was based on the 1924 novel of the same name by the prolific Edgar Wallace. It is one of five films starring Miller which is not known to be extant, and... |
William Beaudine William Beaudine William Beaudine was an American film actor and director. He was one of Hollywood's most prolific directors, turning out films in remarkable numbers and in a wide variety of genres.-Early life and career:... |
Considered the best of Max Miller's films |
1936 | The Man Behind the Mask The Man Behind the Mask The Man Behind the Mask is a 1936 British mystery film directed by Michael Powell and starring Hugh Williams, Jane Baxter, Ronald Ward, Maurice Schwartz, George Merritt, Henry Oscar and Peter Gawthorne... |
Michael Powell | Powell's last quota quickie |
1936 | The Scarab Murder Case The Scarab Murder Case The Scarab Murder Case is a classic whodunnit written by S. S. Van Dine. In this book, detective Philo Vance's murder investigation takes place in a private home that doubles as a museum of Egyptology, and the solution depends in part on Vance's extensive knowledge of Egyptian history and customs,... |
Michael Hankinson | The only Philo Vance Philo Vance Philo Vance featured in 12 crime novels written by S. S. Van Dine , published in the 1920s and 1930s. During that time, Vance was immensely popular in books, movies, and on the radio. He was portrayed as a stylish, even foppish dandy, a New York bon vivant possessing a highly intellectual bent... film made in Britain |
1937 | The Vulture The Vulture (1937 film) The Vulture is a 1937 British quota quickie slapstick comedy film, directed by Ralph Ince and starring Claude Hulbert, Hal Walters and Lesley Brook. The film proved very popular with audiences and the following year spawned a sequel The Viper, although this was much less successful... |
Ralph Ince | Last film directed by Ince before his death in a road accident |
1938 | The Viper The Viper (film) The Viper is a 1938 British slapstick comedy film, directed by Roy William Neill and starring Claude Hulbert and Hal Walters. The film was a sequel to the previous year's very successful The Vulture, with Hulbert and Walters reprising their roles as hapless private detective Cedric Gull and his... |
Roy William Neill Roy William Neill Roy William Neill was a film director best known today for directing several of the Sherlock Holmes films starring Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, made between 1943 and 1946 and released by Universal Studios.... |
Sequel to The Vulture |
1939 | The Good Old Days The Good Old Days (film) The Good Old Days is a 1940 British comedy film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Max Miller, Hal Walters and Kathleen Gibson. A group of entertainers struggle to get permission to perform at a tavern in 1840.-Cast:... |
Roy William Neill | The only Max Miller film with a period setting |
1939 | Murder Will Out | Roy William Neill | Playing in cinemas at outbreak of World War II |
1940 | Dr. O'Dowd Dr. O'Dowd Dr. O'Dowd is a 1940 British drama film directed by Herbert Mason and starring Shaun Glenville, Peggy Cummins, Felix Aylmer and Irene Handl. The film is currently missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute's "75 Most Wanted" lost films.-Cast:* Shaun... |
Herbert Mason Herbert Mason -Director:* The First Offence * His Lordship * East Meets West * Take My Tip * Strange Boarders * The Silent Battle * A Window in London * Dr. O'Dowd... |
Irish-set drama, screen debut of Peggy Cummins Peggy Cummins Peggy Cummins is a retired Irish actress. Cummins is best known for her performance in Joseph H. Lewis' Gun Crazy , playing a trigger happy femme fatale who robs banks with her lover .-Early life:... . Enthusiastically reviewed in Ireland ("a film about Ireland with a difference...no animals in the living rooms of the homes.") |
1941 | This Man Is Dangerous This Man Is Dangerous This Man Is Dangerous is a 1941 British thriller film, directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring James Mason and Gordon McLeod. The film is based on the novel They Called Him Death by David Hume.... |
Lawrence Huntington Lawrence Huntington Lawrence Huntington was a British film director, screenwriter and producer.Huntington was born in London on 9 March 1900, he directed more than thirty films following his debut feature After Many Years in 1930, later going on to work in television before his death in 1968.-Partial filmography:*... |
The only missing James Mason James Mason James Neville Mason was an English actor who attained stardom in both British and American films. Mason remained a powerful figure in the industry throughout his career and was nominated for three Academy Awards as well as three Golden Globes .- Early life :Mason was born in Huddersfield, in the... film. Last shown on TV in the UK in 1987, but no print can currently be located |
1943 | Deadlock | Ronald Haines | Convoluted thriller with John Slater John Slater (actor) John Slater was a British character actor usually seen as lugubrious, amiable cockney types.His father was an antiques dealer. After attending St. Clement Danes School, Slater began acting in farce at the Whitehall Theatre. He first appeared on film in 1938, remaining active in the industry up to... in dual "twins" role |
1943 | It's in the Bag It's in the Bag (1944 film) It's in the Bag is a 1944 British comedy film directed by Herbert Mason and starring Elsie Waters, Doris Waters and Ernest Butcher. Gert and Dasie try to recover a valuable lost dress... |
Herbert Mason | Popular Gert and Daisy Gert and Daisy Gert and Daisy were the two characters of a British female comedy act who are particularly remembered for their contribution to film and radio entertainment during World War II... slapstick comedy |
1943 | Squadron Leader X Squadron Leader X Squadron Leader X is a 1943 British World War II spy drama, directed by Lance Comfort and starring Eric Portman and Ann Dvorak. The screenplay was adapted by Miles Malleson and Wolfgang Wilhelm from a short story by Emeric Pressburger.-Plot:... |
Lance Comfort Lance Comfort Lance Comfort was an English film director and producer born in Harrow, London.With a career spanning over 25 years he became one of the most prolific film directors in Britain though never gained critical attention and remained on the fringes of the film industry creating mostly B movies.Comfort... |
Sought due to critical reassessment of Comfort's importance in British cinema history |
1944 | Kiss the Bride Goodbye Kiss the Bride Goodbye Kiss the Bride Goodbye is a 1945 British romantic comedy drama, directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Patricia Medina and Jimmy Hanley. The film also features an early role for Jean Simmons, almost two years before she achieved stardom in Great Expectations.-Plot:Factory girl Joan Dodd and Jack... |
Paul L. Stein Paul L. Stein Paul Ludwig Stein was an Austrian-born film director with 67 films to his credit. Stein began his career in Berlin in 1918 and worked exclusively in the German silent film industry until 1926, when he first went to Hollywood, and spent the next five years commuting between Germany and the U.S.,... |
Pre-stardom Jean Simmons Jean Simmons Jean Merilyn Simmons, OBE was an English actress. She appeared predominantly in motion pictures, beginning with films made in Great Britain during and after World War II – she was one of J... role |
1944 | Welcome, Mr. Washington Welcome, Mr. Washington Welcome, Mr. Washington is a 1944 British drama film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Barbara Mullen, Donald Stewart, Peggy Cummins, Martita Hunt and Herbert Lomas. Two sisters are left almost peniless by their father's sudden death, and are forced to lease their estate as an airbase to... |
Leslie S. Hiscott Leslie S. Hiscott Leslie S. Hiscott was a British film director and screenwriter who made over sixty films between 1925 and 1956. He was born in London in 1894. In 1931 he directed Alibi, the first ever depiction of Hercule Poirot, Agatha Christie's famous detective, with Austin Trevor in the lead role... |
American soldiers in an English village. Comparison with the same year's A Canterbury Tale A Canterbury Tale A Canterbury Tale is a 1944 British film by the film-making team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It stars Eric Portman, Sheila Sim, Dennis Price and Sgt. John Sweet; Esmond Knight provided narration and played several small roles. For the postwar American release, Raymond Massey narrated... |
1945 | Flight from Folly Flight from Folly Flight from Folly is a 1945 British musical comedy film directed by Herbert Mason and starring Patricia Kirkwood and Hugh Sinclair, with music from Edmundo Ros and his famous Rumba Band... |
Herbert Mason | First starring screen role of stage star Patricia Kirkwood Patricia Kirkwood Patricia Kirkwood was a British stage actress who appeared in numerous performances of dramas, cabaret, revues, music hall, variety, and pantomimes. She also performed on radio, television, and movies... |
1945 | For You Alone For You Alone For You Alone is a 1945 British World War II romance melodrama, one of only two films directed by cinematographer Geoffrey Faithfull, starring Lesley Brook, Dinah Sheridan and Jimmy Hanley... |
Geoffrey Faithfull Geoffrey Faithfull Geoffrey Faithfull B.S.C., was a British cinematographer who worked on more than 180 feature films from starting in the industry in the 1910s. Faithfull also directed two films: For You Alone and I'll Turn to You .-External links:... |
Lavish wartime melodrama, a huge box-office hit |
1945 | The World Owes Me a Living The World Owes Me a Living The World Owes Me a Living is a 1945 British World War II film drama, directed by Vernon Sewell and starring David Farrar and Judy Campbell. The film is based on a novel by John Llewellyn Rhys, a young author who was killed in action in 1940 while serving in the Royal Air Force... |
Vernon Sewell Vernon Sewell Vernon Campbell Sewell was a British film director, screenwriter, producer writer and, briefly, an actor. Sewell was born in London, England in 1903. He was educated at Marlborough College. He directed over 30 films during his career, starting with Morgenrot in 1933... |
Lost film from a re-evaluated director |
1948 | Bless 'Em All | Robert Jordan Hill | Army comedy-musical, screen debut of Max Bygraves Max Bygraves Max Bygraves OBE is an English comedian, singer, actor and variety performer. He appeared on his own television shows, sometimes performing comedy sketches between songs... . 2½-minute trailer survives |
1948 | But Not in Vain But Not in Vain But Not in Vain is a 1948 Anglo-Dutch World War II drama, directed by Edmond T. Gréville and starring Raymond Lovell. The film is set in 1944 in the occupied Netherlands, and was shot at the Cinetone Studios in Amsterdam, with exterior filming taking place at locations in and around the city... |
Edmond T. Gréville Edmond T. Gréville Edmond T. Gréville was a French film director and screenwriter.... |
Tense World War II drama by increasingly studied director |
1948 | Somewhere in Politics Somewhere in Politics Somewhere in Politics is a 1949 British comedy film directed by John E. Blakeley and starring Frank Randle, Tessie O'Shea and Josef Locke. It was the fifth and final film in the Somewhere series of films featuring Randle.-Cast:... |
John E. Blakeley John E. Blakeley John E. Blakeley was a British film producer, director and screenwriter, the founder of Mancunian Films.Born Ardwick, Manchester, son of James Blakeley , and Margaret . His father had become an early film distributor in 1908 after previous work as a travelling draper... |
Mancunian Films Mancunian Films Mancunian Films was a British motion picture production company organized in 1934.Founded by John E. Blakeley, the company originally produced films in London on extremely low budgets. Blakeley's first studio consisted of a single soundstage in a loft space above a taxi garage... production starring Frank Randle Frank Randle Frank Randle was an English comedian... . An 18-minute segment survives |
1949 | The Golden Madonna | Ladislao Vajda | Location-shot in Italy, starring Phyllis Calvert Phyllis Calvert Phyllis Calvert was an English film, stage and television actress. She was one of the leading stars of the Gainsborough melodramas of the 1940s.... |
1950 | Double Confession Double Confession Double Confession is a 1950 British crime film directed by Ken Annakin and starring Derek Farr, Joan Hopkins, Peter Lorre and William Hartnell.... |
Ken Annakin Ken Annakin Kenneth Cooper Annakin, OBE was an English film director.- Biography :Annakin grew up in Beverley, Yorkshire where he attended the local school. He began his career in feature films following an early experience making documentaries. His first filmwork was in 1947 with the Rank Organisation... |
Peter Lorre Peter Lorre Peter Lorre was an Austrian-American actor frequently typecast as a sinister foreigner.He caused an international sensation in 1931 with his portrayal of a serial killer who preys on little girls in the German film M... 's only non-Hitchcock British film |
1952 | Hammer the Toff Hammer the Toff Hammer the Toff is a 1952 British crime film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring John Bentley and Patricia Dainton. The film was based on the 1947 novel of the same name by John Creasey, the 17th in the series featuring upper-class sleuth Richard Rollison, also known as "The Toff"... |
Maclean Rogers Maclean Rogers -Selected filmography:Director* The Third Eye * The Mayor's Nest * Up for the Derby * The Crime at Blossoms * Trouble * Summer Lightning * It's a Cop * Virginia's Husband... |
Two films based on the John Creasey John Creasey John Creasey MBE was an English crime and science fiction writer. The author of more than 600 novels, he published them using 28 different pseudonyms, including Anthony Morton, Michael Halliday, Kyle Hunt, J.J. Marric, Jeremy York, Richard Martin, Peter Manton, Norman Deane, Gordon Ashe, Henry St... character The Toff The Toff In the series of adventure novels by John Creasey, the Toff is the nickname of the Honourable Richard Rollison, an upper-class crime sleuth. Creasey published almost 60 Toff adventures, beginning with Introducing the Toff in 1938 and continuing through The Toff and the Crooked Copper, published in... |
1952 | Salute the Toff Salute the Toff Salute the Toff is a 1952 British crime film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring John Bentley and Carol Marsh. The film was based on the 1941 novel of the same name by John Creasey, the sixth in the series featuring upper-class sleuth Richard Rollison, also known as "The Toff"... |
Maclean Rogers | as above |
1953 | Small Town Story Small Town Story Small Town Story is a 1953 British thriller, directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Donald Houston and Susan Shaw . The film is set in the world of association football and features appearances from sporting legend Denis Compton and commentator Raymond Glendenning, as well as players from the... |
Montgomery Tully Montgomery Tully Montgomery Tully was an Irish film director and writer. Born in Dublin, Tully worked on low-budget British films, mostly crime dramas. One of his efforts, No Road Back, featured a young Sean Connery in a very early role... |
Football thriller with appearances by Denis Compton Denis Compton Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer... and the Arsenal Arsenal F.C. Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups... and Millwall Millwall F.C. Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the... football teams |
1953 | Three Steps in the Dark Three Steps in the Dark Three Steps in the Dark is a 1953 British B-movie whodunit, directed by Daniel Birt and starring Greta Gynt and Hugh Sinclair.-Plot:A rich but disliked elderly man invites his relatives to a family reunion at his home. Once the gathering is complete, he announces enigmatically that he intends to... |
Daniel Birt Daniel Birt Daniel Birt was an English film director and editor. Birt began his career as an editor in 1932 with an assistant credit on The Lucky Number, and went on to edit twelve films during the 1930s.... |
Murder mystery starring Greta Gynt Greta Gynt Greta Gynt , born Margrethe Woxholt, was a Norwegian singer, dancer and actress. -Biography:Greta Gynt was born Margrethe Woxholt in Oslo, Norway. As a child, she came with her parents to England and started dancing lessons at the age of 5. Eventually, they moved back to Norway... |
1954 | The Diamond | Montgomery Tully | First British 3-D film 3-D film A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception... |
1957 | Alive on Sunday | Alfred Travers Alfred Travers -Selected filmography:* Men of Tomorrow * Glorious Colours * Meet the Navy * The Strangers Came * Solution by Phone * Don Giovanni * The Primitives * One for the Pot... |
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1957 | Second Fiddle Second Fiddle (1957 film) Second Fiddle is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Adrienne Corri, Thorley Walters, Lisa Gastoni and Richard Wattis.... |
Maurice Elvey | Elvey's last film |
1960 | Linda Linda (film) Linda is a 1960 British teen film drama, directed by Don Sharp and starring Carol White and Alan Rothwell. The film was shot on location in South London and Brighton, and played in cinemas as the support feature to Saturday Night and Sunday Morning. The film was featured as an episode of Cinema... |
Don Sharp Don Sharp Donald Sharp is a British film director.His most famous films were made for Hammer Studios in the sixties, and included The Kiss of the Vampire and Rasputin, the Mad Monk . Also in 1965 he directed The Face of Fu Manchu, based on the character created by Sax Rohmer, here played by Christopher Lee... |
Teen-drama starring Carol White Carol White Carol White was a British actress.She achieved notability for her performances in the television play Cathy Come Home and the films Poor Cow and I'll Never Forget What's'isname , but alcoholism and drug abuse damaged her career, and from the early 1970s she worked infrequently.-Life and... and Alan Rothwell Alan Rothwell Alan Rothwell is a British actor and television presenter. He was born in Oldham, Lancashire. He first came to fame in 1960, playing the character David Barlow in the then new ITV soap opera Coronation Street. He remained in this role in 1968, and the character was killed off two years later... . Originally shown on a double-bill with Saturday Night and Sunday Morning Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (film) Saturday Night and Sunday Morning is a 1960 British film. It is an adaptation of the 1958 novel of the same name by Alan Sillitoe. Sillitoe wrote the screenplay adaptation and the film was directed by Karel Reisz.-Synopsis:... |
1962 | Crosstrap Crosstrap Crosstrap is a 1962 British B-movie crime film starring Laurence Payne, Jill Adams and Gary Cockrell and marking the directorial debut of Robert Hartford-Davis... |
Robert Hartford-Davis Robert Hartford-Davis Robert Hartford-Davis was a British born producer, director and writer, who worked on film and television in both in the United Kingdom and United States. He is also sometimes credited as Michael Burrowes or Robert Hartford.... |
Directorial debut, reportedly with exceptionally graphic violence for its time |
1963 | Farewell Performance | Robert Tronson | Murder mystery set in the pop world, with performances from Joe Meek Joe Meek Robert George "Joe" Meek was a pioneering English record producer and songwriter.... acts including The Tornados The Tornados The Tornados were an English instrumental group of the 1960s that acted as backing group for many of record producer Joe Meek's productions and also for singer Billy Fury. They enjoyed several chart hits in their own right, including the UK and U.S. Number One "Telstar" , the first U.S... and Heinz Heinz (singer) Heinz was a bassist and singer.-Life:Heinz was born in Detmold, but from the age of seven was brought up in Eastleigh, Hampshire, England, where a road is named after him. His biggest solo hit was "Just Like Eddie", a tribute to Eddie Cochran... |
1968 | Sleep Is Lovely | David Hart | Believed to be experimental in filming style, no evidence of screening to a trade or paying audience |
1969 | The Promise | Michael Hayes | The first time Russian playwright Aleksei Arbuzov Aleksei Arbuzov Aleksei Nikolaevich Arbuzov was a Soviet playwright.Arbuzov was born in Moscow, but his family moved to Petrograd in 1914. Orphaned at the age of eleven, he found salvation in the theater, and at fourteen he began to work in the Mariinsky Theatre... allowed any of his works to be filmed. Stars Ian McKellen Ian McKellen Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE is an English actor. He has received a Tony Award, two Academy Award nominations, and five Emmy Award nominations. His work has spanned genres from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction... |
1971 | Nobody Ordered Love Nobody Ordered Love Nobody Ordered Love is a 1972 British horror film directed by Robert Hartford-Davis and starring Ingrid Pitt, Judy Huxtable and Tony Selby. During the shooting of a First World War film entitled The Somme a tragic series of events unfolds for the cast and crew... |
Robert Hartford-Davis | Following poor promotion and a critical panning, Hartford-Davis reportedly took back all prints and ordered them to be destroyed after his death |
1972 | The Cherry Picker The Cherry Picker The Cherry Picker is 1972 British drama film directed by Peter Curran and starring Lulu, Bob Sherman, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Patrick Cargill, Jack Hulbert, Fiona Curzon, Terry-Thomas and Marianne Stone. As of August 2010, the film is missing from the BFI National Archive, and is listed as one of the... |
Peter Curran | Mild sexploitation comedy with cast including Lulu Lulu (singer) Lulu Kennedy-Cairns, OBE , best known by her stage name Lulu, is a Scottish singer, actress, and television personality who has been successful in the entertainment business from the 1960s through to the present day... , Spike Milligan Spike Milligan Terence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the... and Terry-Thomas Terry-Thomas Thomas Terry Hoar Stevens was a distinctive English comic actor, known as Terry-Thomas. He was famous for his portrayal of disreputable members of the upper classes, especially cads and toffs, with the trademark gap in his front teeth, cigarette holder, smoking jacket, and catch-phrases such as... . Believed to be still in private circulation via inferior quality bootleg copies, but original prints and negatives are missing |
1973 | Symptoms Symptoms (film) Symptoms is a 1974 British horror film directed by José Ramón Larraz. It was entered into the 1974 Cannes Film Festival. Although circulated privately through bootlegs, the original prints are missing, and was last shown on British television in 1983.... |
José Ramón Larraz José Ramón Larraz José Ramón Larraz is a Spanish director of exploitation and horror fims such as the erotic and bloody Vampyres .... |
British entry in the 1974 Cannes Film Festival 1974 Cannes Film Festival - Jury :*René Clair *Jean-Loup Dabadie *Kenne Fant *Félix Labisse *Irwin Shaw *Michel Soutter *Monica Vitti *Alexander Walker *Rostislav Yurenev -Feature film competition:... . Also believed to circulate privately through bootlegs, but original source material has not been traced |
1983 | Where Is Parsifal? Where Is Parsifal? Where is Parsifal? is a 1983 British comedy film directed by Henri Helman. It was released in France on April 13, 1988. The cast includes Tony Curtis, Donald Pleasence, Erik Estrada, and Orson Welles. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival... |
Henri Helman | Cast includes Orson Welles Orson Welles George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio... , Tony Curtis Tony Curtis Tony Curtis was an American film actor whose career spanned six decades, but had his greatest popularity during the 1950s and early 1960s. He acted in over 100 films in roles covering a wide range of genres, from light comedy to serious drama... and Peter Lawford Peter Lawford Peter Sydney Ernest Aylen , better known as Peter Lawford, was an English-American actor.He was a member of the "Rat Pack", and brother-in-law to US President John F. Kennedy, perhaps more noted in later years for his off-screen activities as a celebrity than for his acting... . Shown at 1984 Cannes Film Festival 1984 Cannes Film Festival - Jury :*Dirk Bogarde *Franco Cristaldi *Michel Deville *Stanley Donen *Istvan Dosai *Arne Hestenes *Isabelle Huppert *Ennio Morricone... but withdrawn before scheduled UK release. Never publicly available in UK or U.S., original English-language sources are missing. |