Wendy Richard Movies
- 1985
The British drama series EastEnders - which premiered in 1985 - follows the interconnected lives of the residents of Albert Square, in the East End of London. Extraordinarily popular with English audiences, the program celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2005. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 1977
- Add Are You Being Served?: The Movie to QueueAdd Are You Being Served?: The Movie to top of Queue
Are You Being Served? was a popular British TV sitcom all about the balmy employees of a department store clothing section. This 1977 feature-film version of Are You Being Served? finds screenwriters Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft not content with leaving the regulars in their natural cloak-and-suit habitat, so they send most of the cast on holiday to a fictional resort. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1973
- R
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
- Starring:
- Sidney James, Joan Sims, (more)
The last of four "medical" entries in the Carry On series is also the lewdest; whether it's the funniest is a matter of taste (taste?) The action takes places at Finisham Maternity Hospital. If you liked that "Finisham" gag, you'll adore such characters as Susan Ball, Miss Willing, and Mrs. Putzova. Oh, yes, we must have a plot somewhere. It seems that a group of thieves hope to steal a huge shipment of contraceptives from the hospital. Alas and alack for them, Matron (Hattie Jacques) and head doctor Sir Bernard Cutting (Kenneth Williams) remain forever underfoot. Other stalwart Carry On-ers in the cast, many in surprisingly fleeting roles, include Kevin Connor, Joan Sims and Barbara Windsor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1972
Bless This House is a feature-length spinoff of the British TV sitcom of the same name. The episodic nature of the film suggests that it was cobbled together from various half hours of the original series. Sidney James and Diana Coupland play the nonplussed owners of a "money pit" new home. Their misadventures involve fire, water, homemade booze, and angry neighbors. Most American viewers got their first chance to savor Bless This House when the featurized version was made available to cable TV in the early 1980s. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Based on a popular British television series from the late sixties, On the Buses centers on the chaos caused in a bus depot when the boss hires a passel of female bus drivers. This marked the first of three theatrical features based on the series (the second and third installments were the 1972 Mutiny on the Buses and the 1974 Holiday on the Buses, respectively). Though all three films were critically savaged, they grossed dollar one in Great Britain, particularly this first installment - eliciting a host of sequels and imitators. The Motion Picture Guide wrote of On the Buses, " The humor is sexist, of course, and infantile, with no wit or sophistication, which of course ensured its appeal to a large segment of the masses." ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Reg Varney, Doris Hare, (more)
Part spoof and part "straight," Gumshoe comes off as an affectionate tribute to the hard-boiled detective films of yore. Albert Finney stars as Eddie Ginley, a Liverpool bingo-caller and erstwhile comedian who has been weaned on the novels of Raymond Chandler and Dashiel Hammett. Fancying himself an ace detective, Ginley quits his job to form his own agency. Before long, he is involved in a complex mystery with decided echoes of The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep, replete with femme fatale (Janice Rule) and sinister fat man (George Silver). Armed with little more than a slick line of patter, Ginley plunges into this baffling case, while his level-headed brother (Frank Finlay) and sister-in-law (Billie Whitelaw) try to talk him out of it. Despite its satirical content, Gumshoe turns out to be a fascinating mystery yarn on its own terms. Albert Finney also produced the film, while none other than Andrew Lloyd Webber supplied the musical score. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Albert Finney, Billie Whitelaw, (more)
- 1970
- R
Based on a best-selling novel by John Christopher, this combination horror-movie, cautionary tale warns against the dangers of pollution. The tale is set in a futuristic Britain that has been decimated by the sudden onset of a terrible plague caused by environmental damage. Most of the devastation occurs in London. One family flees to the sanctuary of a friend's farm. The journey is treacherous and the clan must fight insane biker gangs and deal with their own personal problems, but eventually, they make it to the farm. Unfortunately, though they were especially invited, the owner's ruthless brother refuses to let them enter and so the desperate head of the family leads a brutal attack. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nigel Davenport, Jean Wallace, (more)
