Barbara Windsor Movies

Starting with Carry on Sergeant in 1958 and continuing on to Carry on Columbus in 1992, the "Carry on" series were among the most popular and best-loved film comedies in Great Britain, combining broad slapstick humor and risqué wink-and-nudge farce. Bubbly blonde Barbara Windsor and double entendre master Sidney James were two of the key members of the stock company which starred in the many "Carry On" pictures. They also shared a stormy love affair which began during the filming of Carry on Cleo in 1964 and continued, on and off, until James died of a heart attack in 1976. Cor Blimey! is a feature made for British television, based on Barbara Windsor's memoirs, which traces the ups and down of their secret romance. Samantha Spiro plays Barbara Windsor, Geoffrey Hutchings appears as Sidney James, Adam Godley portrays their frequent co-star Kenneth Williams, and Barbara Windsor also makes a brief appearance as herself. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

The British sitcom You Rang, M'Lord was a wicked lampoon of the popular drama series Upstairs, Downstairs. The pilot episode, telecast December 29, 1988, endeavored to explain the curious relationship between the upper-crust Meldrum family and their rather disreputable servants. It seemed that during WWI, a pair of larcenous "Tommies," Alf (Paul Shane) and James (Jeffrey Holland), attempted to steal the valuables from a "dead" officer. As it turned out, the corpse was very much alive -- and better still, he was the Hon. Teddy Meldrum (Michael Knowles), brother of fabulously wealthy Lord George Meldrum (Donald Hewlett). Laboring under the misapprehension that James was trying to save his life, Teddy rewarded the man with a job for life as a servant in the Meldrum household. Several years later, who should resurface but James' old chum Alf. Promising to keep secret the truth about the "rescue" in exchange for certain favors, Alf was installed as the Meldrum's butler at the behest of the disgruntled James. Later on, Alf's daughter Ivy (Su Pollard) was hired as a maid, though she kept mum about her family ties with Alf. Lasting 50 episodes, You Rang, M'Lord was seen from January 14, 1990 to April 24, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This British Christmas special starring the old time radio and movie character Worzel Gummidge finds the lovable, smart-mouthed cad bringing his trademark sense of fun and craziness to a swanky Christmas ball. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide

Lewis Flander and Carol Hawkins star in the hectic British farce Not Now Comrade. Flander plays a Russian ballet dancer who decides to defect. Unable to reach the British embassy, Flander hides out with London stripteaser Hawkins. There's an abundance of female flesh in this one, a fact that necessitated numerous snips in the TV version that made the UHF rounds in the 1980s. Watch for Not Now Comrade codirector Ray Cooney and veteran British funster Roy Kinnear in cameo roles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

One of the stars of Walt Disney's Mary Poppins, Dick Van Dyke, is re-united with that film's composer and lyricist, Richard M.Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, in this big budget and bloodless children's fantasy musical, based on the children's book by James Bond author Ian Fleming. Van Dyke plays Caractacus Potts, a failed inventor who lives in a big house with his two children -- Jemima Heather Ripley and Jeremy Adrian Hall -- and eccentric father Lionel Jeffries. Potts has to raise 30 shillings so his children can buy a broken-down racing car from the junkyard. After a disastrous attempt to sell his invention of whistling sweets to Lord Scrumptious (James Robertson-Justice), the local candy maker, he finally gets enough money for the car by doing a Dick Van Dyke dance routine at the county fair. Potts takes the car and miraculously transforms the vehicle into a shiny new car named Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. While on a picnic with the children and Truly Scrumptious (Sally Ann Howes), Lord Scrumptious' beautiful daughter, Potts concocts a fantasy tale about the magical powers of the car, which can now float on water and fly. In the tale, Baron Bomburst (Gert Frobe) wants the car for himself and kidnaps the automobile and the inventor. But Bomburst captures Grandpa by mistake along with the wrong car, so Potts, Truly, and the children have to enlist Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on a rescue mission to Bomburst's lair to save Grandpa. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

In A Study in Terror the ever popular Sherlock Holmes and his companion Dr. Watson search for the Victorian serial killerJack the Ripper in this well-made and exciting mystery produced, written and directed by James Hill. In this adaptation of the popular character created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Holmes (John Neville) aided by Dr. Watson (Donald Houston) and his brother Mycroft (Robert Morley) are called in to help catch the crazed killer of prostitutes. This film combines all the elements beloved by fans of Sherlock Holmes resulting in a satisfying and well-acted mystery. John Neville is good as the cool, logical Holmes and Robert Morley adds a nice dash of humor to liven up the story. A Study in Terror is highly recommended for fans of Sherlock Holmes and should be enjoyed by any viewer who loves vintage mysteries. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide

Britain's long-running (some would say interminable) series of "Carry On" comedies managed to satirize virtually every film genre ever conceived over three decades. Since espionage dramas were hot in 1964, it was inevitable that the unwary world would be treated to Carry on Spying. The "maguffin" in this yarn is the top-secret Formula X, which has been pilfered by that insidious organization S.T.E.N.C.H. (Society for Total Extinction of Non-Existent Humans). Enter the heroes, the men and women of British Operational Security--better known as B.O.S.H. The good guys are understaffed, thus novice agent Kenneth Williams is put in charge of smashing the evil machinations of Dr. Crow (Judith Furse) and The Fat Man (Eric Pohlmann). The level of wit in Carry on Spying is sustained by the character name of leading lady Barbara Windsor, who plays the delectable Daphne Honeybutt. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This British comedy drama of the lower classes features actors with such thick cockney accents that some prints of the film were subtitled. James Booth stars as Charlie, a merchant seaman who returns home to the East End after two years to find that his wife Maggie (Barbara Windsor) has taken up with another man, a married bus driver named Bert (George Sewell). After taking his brother Fred (Roy Kinnear) hostage in a pub, Charlie gets a reunion with Maggie, who shows up pushing a pram. It seems she's given birth to a child, and the father's identity is uncertain. Charlie and Maggie reconcile, but not before a vicious row with Bert, who doesn't want to give up his girl. Windsor, a BAFTA Best Actress nominee for her role, also performed the film's title song. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

In this British crime drama, the sister of a suicide victim begins to question the real reason for her sibling's death after she learns that 7,000 pounds were removed from her bank account just prior to her death. She asks her sister's banker, but he claims to know nothing. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

Alfred Lynch and Sean Connery star as a pair of klutzy RAF members, during World War II, who are more interested in running petty confidence scams that toting rifles. Though they doggedly avoid extra effort of any kind, Pope (Lynch) and Pascoe (Connery) are sent on a top-secret mission. The more the duo screws up, the more they succeed in pulling off their assignment, and through no real input of their own they become heroes. On the Fiddle more closely resembled an American service comedy than a British film, thus it was logical that its U.S. title was Operation SNAFU. During the James Bond craze, the film was retitled Operation Warhead and Sean Connery's participation was played up in the ads -- complete with the anachronistic inclusion of bikini-clad starlets! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

An 18-month-old baby disappears in London. The parents, US embassy worker David Knight and his wife Julia Arnall, are panic-stricken. Detective David Farrar tries to locate the child, but clues are scarce. At the last possible moment, Farrar rescues the infant from a grueling fate and collars the kidnappers. This nail-biting film is filled to capacity with many of Britain's top supporting players, including Thora Hird, Everley Gregg, Joan Sims, Shirley Anne Field, Joan Hickson, Dandy Nichols, Mona Washbourne, Barbara Winsor and George Woodbridge. Released in the US by Republic, under the title Tears for Simon. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This threadbare "Carry On" comedy is set in the 18th century and concerns a fellow with a dual identity: by day, he's the Reverend Flasher; after dusk, he moonlights as the treacherous highwayman Dick Turpin. (Both are played by Sidney James). Dogooders Captain Desmond Fancey (Kenneth Williams) and Sgt. Jock Strapp (Jack Douglas) search for this elusive scoundrel who is robbing travelers every evening. Adding fool to the fire is Mme. Desiree (Joan Sims) and her entourage of doxies. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The "Carry On" gang returns with Sidney Fiddler (Sid James) conning the local council into running a beauty pageant to promote their community. He's thrilled with the prospect of entertaining all the lovely young contestants, but his girlfriend has a different plan in mind. Soon, a women's liberation group invades the premises and takes over -- promptly ruining everything. ~ All Movie Guide