''Dateline Diamonds'' is a 1965

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

music-film. The film was shot in

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

. The "pop and cop" genre of film was a popular concept in the UK during the early 1960s to highlight young music talent and was geared to appeal directly to the young

teenage Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

market. The film was a low-budget

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

and released to support the main feature film ''

Doctor in Clover ''Doctor in Clover'' is a British comedy film released in 1966, starring Leslie Phillips. The film is based on the novel of the same title by Richard Gordon. It is the sixth of the seven films in the ''Doctor'' series. The film was released i ...

'' starring

Leslie Phillips Leslie Samuel Phillips (20 April 1924 – 7 November 2022) was an English actor, director, producer and author. He achieved prominence in the 1950s, playing smooth, upper-class comic roles utilising his "Ding dong" and "Hello" catchphrases. ...

Plot

Major Fairclough is linked to an international criminal gang, which uses the MV ''Galaxy'' (the ship which was the home of 1960s

pirate radio Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially w ...

station Radio London) to smuggle stolen diamonds from the UK to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. Fairclough blackmails Lester Benson, the fictitious manager of the

Small Faces Small Faces were an English rock band from London, founded in 1965. The group originally consisted of Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones and Jimmy Winston, with Ian McLagan replacing Winston as the band's keyboardist in 1966. The band w ...

, into aiding and abetting his crimes.

Production

The film features the original lineup of British band

(

Jimmy Winston James Edward Winston Langwith (20 April 1945 – 26 September 2020), known professionally as Jimmy Winston, was an English musician and actor. He was the original keyboard player with Small Faces. Winston had apparently previously worked under th ...

was replaced in 1966 by

Ian McLagan Ian Patrick McLagan (; 12 May 1945 – 3 December 2014) was an English keyboardist, best known as a member of the rock bands Small Faces and Faces. He also collaborated with the Rolling Stones and led his own band from the late 1970s. He was in ...

). Band manager

Don Arden Don Arden (born Harry Levy; 4 January 1926 – 21 July 2007) was an English music manager, agent, and businessman. He managed the careers of rock acts such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Air Supply, Small Faces, The Move, Black Sabbath ...

arranged for Small Faces to appear in the film as a promotional vehicle for "

I've Got Mine "I've Got Mine" was the second official song released by the English rock band Small Faces in 1965. The song failed to chart despite receiving favourable reviews in the British music press. "I've Got Mine" is a hard-hitting, moody R&B song and ...

", the follow-up to their debut hit single "

Whatcha Gonna Do About It "Whatcha Gonna Do About It" is the debut single released by the English rock group Small Faces, released in the UK on 6 August 1965. The song peaked at number 14 in the UK Singles Chart, and stayed on chart for a total of 14 weeks. It reached ...

". However, the film's release was delayed and the band received no other publicity for their single, which failed to chart. The final sequence, showing Rey Anton and Pro Forma, Mark Richardson, and Small Faces performing on stage, was filmed during a genuine Radio London night at the Rank Ballroom in

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

. The film also features a young

Kiki Dee Pauline Matthews (born 6 March 1947), better known by her stage name Kiki Dee, is an English singer. Known for her blue-eyed soul vocals, she was the first female singer from the UK to sign with Motown's Tamla Records. Dee is best known for h ...

and British vocal group The Chantelles. The film was made at

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 te ...

and on location. A collection of location stills and corresponding contemporary photographs is hosted at reelstreets.com. ''Dateline Diamonds'' has been released on VHS and

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

Cast list

* William Lucas – Maj. Fairclough *

Kenneth Cope Kenneth Charles Cope (born 14 April 1931) is an English retired actor and scriptwriter. He is best known for his roles as Marty Hopkirk in ''Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)'', Jed Stone in ''Coronation Street'' and Ray Hilton in ''Brookside (T ...

– Lester Benson *

George Mikell George Mikell (born Jurgis Mikelaitis; 4 April 1929 – 12 May 2020) was a Lithuanian-Australian actor and writer best known for his performances as Schutzstaffel (SS) officers in '' The Guns of Navarone'' (1961) and '' The Great Escape'' (196 ...

– Paul Verlekt *

Conrad Phillips Conrad Philip Havord (13 April 1925 – 13 January 2016), known professionally as Conrad Phillips, was an English television and film actor. He is best known for playing William Tell in the adventure series ''The Adventures of William Tell'' (1 ...

– Tom Jenkins *

Patsy Rowlands Patricia Amy Rowlands (19 January 1931 – 22 January 2005) was an English actress who is best remembered for her roles in the ''Carry On'' films series, as Betty Lewis in the ITV Thames sitcom '' Bless This House'', and as Alice Meredit ...

– Mrs. Edgecumbe *Burnell Tucker – Dale Meredith (a fictitious DJ) *

Kenny Everett Kenny Everett (born Maurice James Christopher Cole; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995) was an English comedian, radio disc jockey and television presenter. After spells on pirate radio and Radio Luxembourg in the mid-1960s, he was one of the fi ...

– himself *

Anna Carteret Anna Carteret (born 11 December 1942) is a British stage and screen actress. Biography Carteret was born as Annabelle S. Wilkinson on 11 December 1942 in Bangalore, British India, the daughter of Peter John Wilkinson and his wife Patricia Ca ...

– Gay Jenkins *

Vanda Godsell Vanda Godsell (17 November 1922 – 2 April 1990) was an English actress. Hal Erickson writes in Allmovie, "Vanda Godsell specialised in playing disheveled housewives, busybody landladies and blowsy domestics." She appeared as Mrs Weaver in ...

– Mrs. Jenkins *

Gertan Klauber George Gertan Klauber (5 March 1932 – 1 August 2008) was a British bit part character actor. Klauber was born in Czechoslovakia, and after training at the Birmingham Theatre School, his stage appearances included with the RSC and the Nati ...

– Meyerhof *Doel Luscombe – Assistant Commissioner * Peter Zander – Spankaren *

Geoffrey Lumsden Geoffrey Forbes Lumsden (26 December 1914 – 4 March 1984) was a British character actor who had a lengthy career on television. Lumsden was born in London in 1914 and attended Repton School, where he was a contemporary of Denton Welch. By ...

– Army Officer *Ronald Bridges – Garage Attendant *David Kirk – Dock Policeman with brief appearances by Phillip Birch, Earl Richmond and Ben Toney

References

External links

Radio London: More information including photos on ''Dateline Diamonds''
* {{Jeremy Summers 1966 films 1965 crime films 1965 musical films 1965 films British musical films Films set in London Films set in Amsterdam Films directed by Jeremy Summers Films scored by Johnny Douglas 1960s English-language films 1960s British films