The "Carry On" Films

[DB7]

What a Carry On!



Dispense with dishonest nostalgia for these ghastly second-rate films



Peter Bradshaw

Saturday May 15, 2004

The Guardian



If Tony Blair should ever need a diplomatic pretext for breaking with America, or even launching a nuclear strike against it, he could do a lot worse than the recent statement by Tom Hanks on the subject of classic British films. Publicising the Coen brothers' remake of The Ladykillers, Hanks said: "I have never actually seen this particular Ealing movie ... I'm certainly aware of it. I know it the same way I know the Carry On films - I've never seen any of those, either." Hanks is due in Cannes to launch the film next week, and he may develop his thoughts on the Carry On films then.

In the meantime, here is what the Cannes festival jury president, Quentin Tarantino, said this week about the lack of a British film industry: "In Britain, in its heyday in the 1960s, every type of film was being made that could be made ... the Carry On films weren't art, but they were funny." Maybe Hanks and Tarantino will discuss this subject and expose their opinions on the Croisette - oh noooo, stop it, missus.



How disturbing that when Hanks and Tarantino need an example of instantly identifiable British film culture, they reach for the Carry On films. How humiliating to realise that they are being polite, because they believe that we like them, that we genuinely think they're really good. Hanks's apparent belief in the equivalence of the Ealings and the Carry Ons may be insulting, but we have brought it on ourselves with our incessant, tongue-in-cheek praise for the Carry On films, expressed in a smirking sentimental-ironic idiom that I, for one, don't blame the Americans for not understanding or indulging.



Does Tarantino really think the Carry Ons are funny? Well, he is a legendary movie and pop culture omnivore. But if he has watched a single Carry On film and enjoyed it, I will kiss his ass in Macy's window - as they say in Hollywood.



It has long been compulsory to say you adore Carry On films, just to show you're not stuffy or priggish or politically correct. But when we say Carry On films, we mean the clips played on TV. Or really just one single clip, the one in Carry On Camping where Barbara Windsor's bra flies off just as she's doing those exercises, and we cut to Kenneth Williams doing his startled moose expression.



Come on. Be honest. When was the last time you actually sat down and watched a Carry On film all the way through? It isn't possible without a great cloud of irritability, restlessness and depression descending on you. Perhaps the saddest thing was Jack Douglas, a regular in the later films. How many people thought his convulsive, jerky arm movements were really, tongue-out-of-cheek funny?



In his brilliant book on Charles Hawtrey, Roger Lewis recreates the milieu of sadness and second-rateness that pervaded these films. They were profitable for their notoriously autocratic and mean producer, Peter Rogers, due in no small part to the fact that he paid his stars next to nothing. Joan Sims died a few years ago, complaining to the last about the astonishingly low fees. The women got paid less than the men: an unanswerable charge of sexism there - though, to be fair, the same injustice reigns in modern Hollywood. Hawtrey got paid £5,000 per picture in 1958; the pay scale remained the same for 20 years.



None of which need matter to the audience, were it not for the fact that the tattiness and cheapskateness seeps depressingly through on to the screen. Lewis's book gives a list of the Carry On locations, which are a kind of prose-poem version of Betjeman's Metroland: the Odeon, Uxbridge; the Red Lion, Iver; Heatherwood Hospital, Ascot; Camber Sands, near Hastings. The list is fascinating and funny - but are the movies?



The last attempt to make a Carry On, long after the series had slid into borderline soft-porn in the 70s, was Carry On Columbus in 1992, starring Jim Dale and Bernard Cribbins with newer stars like Alexei Sayle, Rik Mayall and Julian Clary. It was considered a clunky disappointment, and everyone wondered how the joyous Carry On spirit seemed to have disappeared. But the truth was that Carry On Columbus was ghastly and embarrassing in precisely the same way the old Carry Ons were in their day - it's just that it wasn't possible to surround a new film with a fog of dishonest nostalgia.



"Can't we do better than this?" asked Ken Russell when his opinion of these cheesy old comedies was canvassed. Let's hope we can. But it's only possible if we chuck this pose that no one really believes in. So please Mr Hanks, please Mr Tarantino, you don't have to say you love these terrible films. At least not on our account.



· Peter Bradshaw is the Guardian's film critic

[Steve Crook]

DB7:

[snip]



How disturbing that when Hanks and Tarantino need an example of instantly identifiable British film culture, they reach for the Carry On films.

[snip]

They could do worse. There was mention of the 1970's sex-comedies here recently.



When most people think about American films they think of Westerns or Action movies, neither of which are exactly the best movies ever made in America



Steve

[DB7]

SteveCrook:

How disturbing that when Hanks and Tarantino need an example of instantly identifiable British film culture, they reach for the Carry On films.

This is simply poor journalism and film snobbery. Tarantino said "No-one every said the Carry On films were art but they were funny.", so the director is clearly remarking on their popular appeal rather than artistic value.



In the case of Hanks, it seems he only knows the Carry On's exist which is hardly a personal endorsement.



It's only a shame Bradshaw never name-dropped the titles he believes they should be watching.

[DB7]

Favourite Carry On film poll results:



Carry On up the Khyber 21.6%

Carry On Screaming 16.8%

Carry On Cleo 12%

Carry On Camping 10.8%

Carry On Cabby 10.8%

Carry On At your Convenience 7.2%

Carry On Sergeant 6%

Carry On Henry 3.6%

Carry On Doctor 3.6%

Carry On Don't Lose Your Head 3.6%

Carry On Again Doctor 2.4%

Carry On Cowboy 1.2%



Total Votes: 83



[ 01. August 2004, 15:50: Message edited by: DB7 ]

[samkydd]

Another wet Sunday afternoon at home and nothing to do but stay indoors and watch the cat scratching himself.

I watched part of a Carry On free DVD and decided that it was time to put it to the vote on here, which one is the best?



Carry On Camping is probably my favourite and had most of the best of the Carry On cast, and probably memorable to most for the flying bikini top scene. The strange thing about it was that two middle aged blokes, Sid James who was knocking on by 1969, and a maturing Bernard Bresslaw, were intent on having a bit of how's your father with two schoolgirls! Not exactly something that would go down well today! Terry Scott managed to get invited into a tent by a lone schoolgirl too!



The music, the 1960s scenes of deserted roads, simple cars and neat and tidy chav free housing estates, what pleasant memories they bring back. My parents used to have the same wallpaper as Terry Scott's living room in the film. The innuendo in almost every line of dialogue was seaside postcard British humour at its best. I particularly liked the acting of Joan Simms' miserable mother "I've got sore misgivings!" and Sid replies, "You should try rubbing talcum powder on them. Yeh Heah Heah Heah Heah!" Priceless!



So what's your favourite one, or did you hate Carry On films?



Which cast members suited the films best, and which didn't?

[Fellwanderer]

(samkydd @ Oct 30 2005, 01:00 PM)

Another wet Sunday afternoon at home and nothing to do but stay indoors and watch the cat scratching himself.

I watched part of a Carry On free DVD and decided that it was time to put it to the vote on here, which one is the best?



Carry On Camping is probably my favourite and had most of the best of the Carry On cast, and probably memorable to most for the flying bikini top scene. The strange thing about it was that two middle aged blokes, Sid James who was knocking on by 1969, and a maturing Bernard Bresslaw, were intent on having a bit of how's your father with two schoolgirls! Not exactly something that would go down well today! Terry Scott managed to get invited into a tent by a lone schoolgirl too!



The music, the 1960s scenes of deserted roads, simple cars and neat and tidy chav free housing estates, what pleasant memories they bring back. My parents used to have the same wallpaper as Terry Scott's living room in the film. The innuendo in almost every line of dialogue was seaside postcard British humour at its best. I particularly liked the acting of Joan Simms' miserable mother "I've got sore misgivings!" and Sid replies, "You should try rubbing talcum powder on them. Yeh Heah Heah Heah Heah!" Priceless!



So what's your favourite one, or did you hate Carry On films?

Any one with Judy Geeson and/or Madeline Smith - preferably both

Which cast members suited the films best, and which didn't?

Best? See above



Although obviously and intentionally very sexist - they did have a certain innocence about them. Memories of a more care-free age.



FELL

[smudge]

Fave ?



CARRY ON SCREAMING - two genres for the price of one - British Comedy and Hammer Horror. A marvellous parody-cum-homage, as sumptuously dressed and lit as the original Hammer gothics (but all done on a shoestring...) A brilliant performance from Harry H. Corbett and who could forget the souldering prescence of husky, sexy Fenella Fielding ?



Top marks all round !



Who didn't fit ? Ted Ray ; he might have been th etop comic of his time, but he was nowhere near comfortable in CARRY ON TEACHER. I have quite a sense of comic history, but Ray's stature as a 'comic's Comic' has always passed me by.



Phil Silvers didn't fit either, in CAMEL.



Unsurpassed moments ; "They put the bloody glass in !" (Sid James as Vic Flange in ABROAD.)



"This is the wife....don't laugh." (Sid to Ken Connor, again ABROAD.)



"We must explore Avery Avenue," and "Foul Feet Smell Something horrible." (Bung and Slowbotham - SCREAMING.)



"Rank Stupidity !" (Kenneth Williams as the Khasi - UP THE KHYBER.)



"Fakir....off !" (Bernard Bresslaw and KHYBER again.)



There are many more, but one last one from KHYBER....



(Kenneth W. again.) "Come back - come back ! There's nothing to be afraid of ! SLOW BURN...., "Oohh - I dunno though !!!"



(Not that I watch them, of course...)



SMUDGE

[Captain Casper]

Carry On Abroad. No question. Closely followed by Cleo.



"Screaming" was very very good although Jim Dale was a bit OTT.



Worst? Emmanuelle or Columbus. Both make me cringe.

[Fellwanderer]

(Captain Casper @ Oct 30 2005, 05:03 PM)



Worst? Emmanuelle or Columbus. Both make me cringe.

Columbus - yes, that was poor. Didn't see Emmanuelle.



Smudge is right about Phil Silvers, too.



FELL

[DB7]

Have to join Smudge and say Carry On Screaming. On reflection that's fairly surprising given Sid James, Hattie and Babs are all absent but the script is a fine homage to both Holmes and numerous horror flicks, the production design is amongst the series best and the gags aren't solely dependent on sexual innuendo.



Most of those between the debut and Khyber are excellent.



Been a few mentions of Carry On over this past week with the launch of the The Complete A-Z of Carry On book.

[David Brent]

Carry On Girls - for the great amount of choice crumpet on show.....oh, and the great comedic acting of course

Although many say that the Carry On films were sexist and degrading to women there are very few examples in the films of the males actually having their way with the sexy females.Most of the times it's just ogling and innuendo's.

A comedy series maybe.....but pretty true to the real life exploits of your average male.



Dave.

[penfold]

Khyber and screaming are probably the best...though I always think carry On Jack is underrated, nice spoof of the Hornblower style adventure, great performances from Kennneth, Charles and also underrated Peter Gilmore - and Juliet Mills in uniform.....mmmm.

[samkydd]

My favourite line in a Carry On has got to be "Infamy, infamy.....they've all got it infamy!" I think it was Kenneth Williams in Carry On Cleo, but I may be wrong!



One or two amazing things about the Carry On cast were that they didn't get paid an awful lot, I heard that Sid only did it to pay bits off his gambling debts, and the private lives of some of the stars were a far cry from the jolly comedy characters we all thought they were off the screen as well as on. Charles Hawtrey and Kenneth Williams were very troubled souls, Joan Simms as well, who died a couple of years ago and never married (I don't know if she was gay), Terry Scott , and of course Sid's gambling and womanising.



Even in the film Three Hats For Lisa with Joe Brown Sid managed to score with the very young French actress Sophie Hardy in the film, his dogged persistence paying off every time as it apparently did with Babs Windsor later on! He wasn't the prettiest bloke in the world but he must have had something going for him!



There was an very good drama about some of the Carry On people on TV a while ago Cor Blimey and I caught the last half hour or so, and I thought it was very well done!

[Fellwanderer]

(samkydd @ Oct 31 2005, 03:47 PM)

My favourite line in a Carry On has got to be "Infamy, infamy.....they've all got it infamy!" I think it was Kenneth Williams in Carry On Cleo, but I may be wrong!

Just about my favourite, too. And yes, it was Kenneth Williams.



I was tempted to play on Memories - now there's a thought! - but decided it was simply too big an invitation for even further innuendo

One or two amazing things about the Carry On cast were that they didn't get paid an awful lot, I heard that Sid only did it to pay bits off his gambling debts, and the private lives of some of the stars were a far cry from the jolly comedy characters we all thought they were off the screen as well as on. Charles Hawtrey and Kenneth Williams were very troubled souls, Joan Simms as well, who died a couple of years ago and never married (I don't know if she was gay), Terry Scott , and of course Sid's gambling and womanising.



Even in the film Three Hats For Lisa with Joe Brown Sid managed to score with the very young French actress Sophie Hardy in the film, his dogged persistence paying off every time as it apparently did with Babs Windsor later on! He wasn't the prettiest bloke in the world but he must have had something going for him!



There was an very good drama about some of the Carry On people on TV a while ago Cor Blimey and I caught the last half hour or so, and I thought it was very well done!

I suppose, for many, it was simply a living even though we probably like to think of it as very glamorous.



FELL

[samkydd]

(Fellwanderer @ Oct 31 2005, 04:42 PM)

I suppose, for many, it was simply a living even though we probably like to think of it as very glamorous.



FELL

Well for anyone who hasn't seen it, Cor Blimey gives a pretty good insight, from what I saw of it. I also heard a Radio Lives broadcast on the life of Kenneth Williams and that is quite scary.

[smudge]

(samkydd @ Oct 31 2005, 03:47 PM)

My favourite line in a Carry On has got to be "Infamy, infamy.....they've all got it infamy!" I think it was Kenneth Williams in Carry On Cleo, but I may be wrong!



One or two amazing things about the Carry On cast were that they didn't get paid an awful lot, I heard that Sid only did it to pay bits off his gambling debts, and the private lives of some of the stars were a far cry from the jolly comedy characters we all thought they were off the screen as well as on. Charles Hawtrey and Kenneth Williams were very troubled souls, Joan Simms as well, who died a couple of years ago and never married (I don't know if she was gay), Terry Scott , and of course Sid's gambling and womanising.



Even in the film Three Hats For Lisa with Joe Brown Sid managed to score with the very young French actress Sophie Hardy in the film, his dogged persistence paying off every time as it apparently did with Babs Windsor later on! He wasn't the prettiest bloke in the world but he must have had something going for him!



There was an very good drama about some of the Carry On people on TV a while ago Cor Blimey and I caught the last half hour or so, and I thought it was very well done!

The new book, the complete A-Z Of Everything Carry On gives all the pay rates. Apparently Harry H. Corbett had the best recompense for SCREAMING, at £12000. He was at the height of his STEPTOE fame at the time.



The INFAMY gag was lifted wholesale from a radio comedy ; ROUND THE HORNE, I think, and they had to get the writers' permission.



Chas. Hawtrey struggled for years with his drinking, Kenny W. was a frustrated academic (amongst other things) but Joan Sims did have men in her life - she just put her career first.



COR BLIMEY ! wasn't at all bad ; Sid had that certain something with the ladies. Apparently he was a very old-fashioned, courteous and charming gent in their company - probably how he won them all.



SMUDGE

[Aenima]

(smudge @ Nov 1 2005, 12:11 PM)

The new book, the complete A-Z Of Everything Carry On gives all the pay rates. Apparently Harry H. Corbett had the best recompense for SCREAMING, at £12000. He was at the height of his STEPTOE fame at the time.

I was off work a couple of weeks ago and caught the book's author on daytime TV with the (still) lovely Valerie Leon. He was rattling off some of the payments the Carry On gang got. Was quite an eye opener.



It sounds like a good book for Carry-On buffs.



Cheers,

A

[Jackdaw]

I seem to remember KW once complaining that in the 50's he was paid 'only' about £750 per movie.Mind you,that would have been considerably more than a man idly picking at the coal-face!



Cheers



Jacky

[samkydd]

(jackdaw @ Nov 1 2005, 04:29 PM)

I seem to remember KW once complaining that in the 50's he was paid 'only' about £750 per movie.Mind you,that would have been considerably more than a man idly picking at the coal-face!



Cheers



Jacky

In the 50s Hancock was getting £2000 per radio show, which is incredible even today. What is more incredible is that in the 30s Gracie Fields was earning £40,000 per film! There's a lesson for you, never mind proper careers get yourself or your kids off to drama school! Work three months a year, tell everyone in interviews how hard it is getting up early at 11am every day, then spend the rest of the time somewhere hot in a drug crazed stupor with loads of tottie until the panto season starts!

[smudge]

And George Formby earned a phenomenal amount of money at his peak too, don't forget....



SMUDGE