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Top Of The Form (film)
''Top of the Form'' is a 1953 British comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Ronald Shiner, Anthony Newley and Harry Fowler. The film draws inspiration from Will Hay's 1937 classic ''Good Morning, Boys''. The film was released in black-and-white. It was made at Pinewood Studios near London with sets designed by the art director Maurice Carter. The film earned billings of £143,000. Plot summary This story explores a bookmaker Ronnie Fortescue (Ronald Shiner), who becomes headmaster of a boys' school, and of his and his pupil's adventures in passing examinations and on a subsequent free trip to Paris. Once in Paris, headmaster and pupils become embroiled in gambling casinos, and in a plot to steal the French Crown Jewels. Cast *Ronald Shiner as Professor Ronnie Fortescue *Anthony Newley as Percy *Harry Fowler as Albert *Jacqueline Pierreux as Yvette *Alfie Bass as Arty Jones *Mary Jerrold as Mrs. Bagshot *Richard Wattis as Willoughby Gore *Howard Marion-Craw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Paddy Carstairs
John Paddy Carstairs (born John Keys; 11 May 1910, in London – 12 December 1970, in London) was a British film director (1933–62) and television director (1962–64), usually of light-hearted subject matter. He was also a comic novelist and Painting, painter. Biography The son of actor Nelson Keys, Carstairs changed his name in order to avoid the appearance of nepotism. He directed 37 films in total. He had a long association with the character of Simon Templar (the character's creator, Leslie Charteris, dedicated the 1963 book, ''The Saint in the Sun'' to Carstairs). Aside from directing the 1939 ''Saint'' film, ''The Saint in London'', he also directed two episodes of ''The Saint (TV series), The Saint'' in the 1960s, making him the only individual (other than Charteris himself) to be connected to both the Hollywood film and British series of ''The Saint''. Carstairs directed many British comedies including many of Norman Wisdom's films. Death Carstairs died of heart att ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harry Fowler
Henry James Fowler, MBE (10 December 1926 – 4 January 2012) was an English character actor in film and television. Over a career lasting more than six decades, he made nearly 200 appearances on screen. Personal life Fowler was born in Lambeth, South London, on 10 December 1926. As a "near illiterate newspaper boy" making eight shillings a week, he told film historian Brian McFarlane, he was invited on to radio to speak about his life in wartime London. In 1951, Fowler married actress Joan Dowling, who committed suicide in 1954. In 1960, he married Catherine Palmer, who survived him.The Independent 9 Jan 2012 Harry Fowler: Prolific screen actor known for his 'cheerful cockney' characters Fowler died on 4 January 2012. He had no ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard Wattis
Richard Wattis (25 February 1912 – 1 February 1975) was an English actor, co-starring in many popular British comedies of the 1950s and 1960s. Early life Richard Cameron Wattis was born on 25 February 1912 in Wednesbury, Staffordshire, the elder of two sons born to Cameron Tom Wattis and Margaret Janet, née Preston. He attended King Edward's School and Bromsgrove School, after which he worked for the electrical engineering firm William Sanders & Co (Wednesbury) Ltd. His uncle, William Preston (1874–1941), was the managing director and was the Conservative MP for Walsall from 1924 to 1929. Career After leaving the family business, Wattis became an actor. His debut was with Croydon Repertory Theatre, and he made many stage appearances in the West End in London. His first appearance in a film was ''A Yank at Oxford'' (1938), but war service interrupted his career as an actor. He served as a second lieutenant in the Small Arms Section of Special Operations Executive at S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mary Jerrold
Mary Jerrold (4 December 1877 – 3 March 1955) was an English actress. She was married to actor Hubert Harben, and mother of actress Joan Harben and celebrity chef Philip Harben. She made her London stage debut as Prudence Dering in ''Mary Pennington Spinster'' (1896); and played Martha Brewster for three and a half years in the original West End production of '' Arsenic and Old Lace'', opening in 1942. In 1922, in a stage production of Jane Austen's ''Pride and Prejudice'', Jerrold became one of the oldest actresses cast as Elizabeth Bennet, at age 44. In the play, she acted opposite her husband, cast as Mr. Collins. She appeared in Molly Keane's '' Ducks and Drakes'' in 1941. In 1946 she starred in the West End melodrama '' But for the Grace of God'' by Frederick Lonsdale. In 1951 she played the lead role in Kenneth Horne's comedy '' And This Was Odd'' at the Criterion Theatre. In 1953 she appeared in ''A Day by the Sea'' by N.C. Hunter. Partial filmography * ''Disraeli'' (1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alfie Bass
Alfie Bass (born Abraham Basalinsky, 10 April 1916 – 16 July 1987) was an English actor. He was born in Bethnal Green, London, the youngest in a Jewish family with ten children; his parents had left Russia many years before he was born. He appeared in a variety of stage, film, television and radio productions throughout his career. Personal life Alfie Bass was born Abraham Basalinsky in Bethnal Green in London's East End. He was the youngest of ten children of Jacob Basalinsky, who had fled Jewish persecution in Russia, and his wife, Ada Miller. After leaving school, he worked in his father's trade as a cabinet-maker. During this time he took part in amateur dramatics at a local boys' club. He was active in the labour movement and often attended union meetings. In 1936 he took part in the Battle of Cable Street, in which activists attempted to prevent a march through the East End by the British Union of Fascists. At the outbreak of World War II, he was rejected by the RAF, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jacqueline Pierreux
Jacqueline Pierreux (15 January 1923 – 10 March 2005) was a French film and television actress.Philip Mosley p.105 From the early 1970s onwards she also enjoyed success as a producer. She was the wife of screenwriter Pierre Léaud and the mother of prolific film actor Jean-Pierre Léaud who starred in Francois Truffaut's ''The 400 Blows'' and ''Day For Night''. Selected filmography * '' The Midnight Sun'' (1943) * '' Six Hours to Lose'' (1946) * ''The Ideal Couple'' (1946) * ''That's Not the Way to Die'' (1946) * ''Between Eleven and Midnight'' (1949) * ''L' Amore di Norma'' (1950) * ''Rome Express'' (1950) * ''Women and Brigands'' (1950) * '' Le Dindon'' (1951) * ''The Case of Doctor Galloy'' (1951) * '' Abbiamo vinto!'' (1951) * '' Malavita'' (1951) * ''We Are All Murderers'' (1952) * '' The Porter from Maxim's'' (1953) * '' Top of the Form'' (1953) * ''This Man Is Dangerous'' (1953) * ''After You Duchess'' (1954) * ''Légère et court vêtue'' (1954) * ''Il seduttore'' (1954) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
French Crown Jewels
The French Crown Jewels (french: Joyaux de la Couronne de France) comprise the crowns, orb, sceptres, diadems and jewels that were symbols of Royal power between 752 and 1825. These were worn by many Kings and Queens of France as well as Emperor Napoleon. The set was finally broken up, with most of it sold off in 1885 by the Third Republic. The surviving French Crown Jewels, principally a set of historic crowns, diadems and parures, are mainly on display in the ''Galerie d'Apollon'' of the Louvre, France's premier museum and former royal palace, together with the Regent Diamond, the Sancy Diamond and the ''Côte-de-Bretagne'' red spinel, carved into the form of a dragon. In addition, some gemstones and jewels (including the Emerald of Saint Louis, the Ruspoli sapphire and the diamond pins of Queen Marie Antoinette) are on display in the Treasury vault of the Mineralogy gallery in the National Museum of Natural History. Use of the French crown jewels The Crown jewels co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bookmaker
A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds. History The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795. Range of events Bookmakers in many countries focus on accepting bets on professional sports, especially horse racing and association football or Indian Premier League cricket. However, a wider range of bets, including on political elections, awards ceremonies such as the Oscars, and novelty bets are accepted by bookmakers in some countries. Operational procedures By "adjusting the odds" in their favour (paying out amounts using odds that are less than what they determined to be the true odds) or by having a point spread, bookmakers aim to guarantee a profit by achieving a 'balanced book', either by getting an equal number of bets for each possible outcome or (when they are offering odds) by getting the amounts wagered on each outcome to reflect the odds. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maurice Carter (film Designer)
Maurice Carter (24 April 1913 in London, England – April 2000 in London, EnglandBrian McFarlane ''The Encyclopedia of British Film'', BFI/Methuen, 2003, p109) was a British production designer. He was one of the first in England to use back projection. He also founded the Guild of Film Art Directors a.k.a. British Film Designers Guild. He was nominated for 2 Oscars and 3 BAFTAs. Selected films * ''Good-Time Girl'' (1948) * ''Christopher Columbus'' (1949) * '' Always a Bride'' (1953) * ''Desperate Moment'' (1953) * '' The Spanish Gardener'' (1957) * ''Anne of the Thousand Days'' (1969) * '' The Land That Time Forgot'' (1975) * '' The People that Time Forgot'' (1977) * ''The First Great Train Robbery ''The First Great Train Robbery'' (known in the United States as ''The Great Train Robbery'') is a 1978 Irish heist comedy film directed by Michael Crichton, who also wrote the screenplay based on his 1975 novel '' The Great Train Robbery''. ...'' (1978) References Exter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Art Director
Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the vision of an artistic production. In particular, they are in charge of its overall visual appearance and how it visual communication, communicates visually, stimulates moods, contrasts features, and psychologically appeals to a target audience. The art director makes decisions about visual elements, what artistic style (visual arts), style(s) to use, and when to use motion graphic design, motion. One of the biggest challenges art directors face is translating desired moods, messages, concepts, and underdeveloped ideas into imagery. In the brainstorming process, art directors, colleagues and clients explore ways the finished piece or scene could look. At times, the art director is responsible for solidifying the vision of the col ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as '' Londinium'' and retains its medieval boundaries.See also: Independent city § National capitals The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which largely comprises Greater London, governed by the Greater London Authority.The Greater London Authority consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The London Mayor is distinguished fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to television programmes, commercials, and pop promos. It is well known as the home of the ''James Bond'' and ''Carry On'' film franchises. History Pinewood Studios was built on the estate of Heatherden Hall, a large Victorian country house which was purchased by Canadian financier, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentford and Chiswick, Lt. Col. Grant Morden (1880–1932). He added refinements such as a ballroom, a Turkish bath and an indoor squash court. Due to its seclusion, it was used as a discreet meeting place for high-ranking politicians and diplomats; the agreement to create the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed there. In 1934, building tycoon Charles Boot (1874–1945) bought the land and turned it into a country club. The ballroom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
