''Dentist on the Job'' is a 1961 British comedy film directed by

C. M. Pennington-Richards Cyril Montague Pennington-Richards (17 December 1911 – 2 January 2005) was a British film director and cinematographer.Dentist in the Chair ''Dentist in the Chair'' is a 1960 British comedy film, directed by Don Chaffey and starring Bob Monkhouse, Ronnie Stevens, Eric Barker and Vincent Ball. The screenplay was written by Val Guest, and based on a novel by Matthew Finch. Additiona ...

'' (1960). It was released in the US with the title ''Get On with It!''. The film was co-written by Hugh Woodhouse and Hazel Adair. It stars

Bob Monkhouse Robert Alan Monkhouse (1 June 1928 – 29 December 2003) was an English comedian, writer and actor. He was the host of television game shows including ''The Golden Shot'', ''Celebrity Squares'', ''Family Fortunes'' and '' ''Wipeout'. Early ...

Kenneth Connor Kenneth Connor, (6 June 1918 – 28 November 1993) was a British stage, film and broadcasting actor, who rose to national prominence with his appearances in the ''Carry On'' films. Early life Connor was born in Highbury, Islington, London, ...

, Ronnie Stevens and

Eric Barker Eric Leslie Barker (12 February 1912 – 1 June 1990) was an English comedy actor. He is most remembered for his roles in the popular British ''Carry On'' films, although he only appeared in the early films in the series, apart from returning f ...

repeating their roles from the previous film. Other actors appearing in the film include

Shirley Eaton Shirley Jean Eaton (born 12 January 1937) is an English actress, author and singer. Eaton appeared regularly in British films throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and gained her highest profile for her iconic appearance as Bond Girl Jill Masterson in ...

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 ...

and Charles Hawtrey. Monkhouse, Eaton, Connor, Barker and Hawtrey had all previously acted together in unrelated 1958 comedy ''

Carry On Sergeant ''Carry On Sergeant'' is a 1958 British comedy film about National Service starring William Hartnell, Bob Monkhouse and Eric Barker; it is the first in the series of ''Carry On'' films, with 31 entries released from 1958 to 1992. The film wa ...

''.

Plot

Colonel Proudfoot of Proudfoot Industries aims to entice a couple of dentists to advertise "Dreem", a revolutionary type of toothpaste, but he knows that if the dentists learn that they are part of an advertising campaign, they will be

struck off The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public" by c ...

. His cousin, the director of a Dental School (also Barker), sees his chance to rid the field of dentistry of two newly qualified incompetents David Cookson and Brian Dexter. However, once employed by Proudfoot, they set about improving on Dreem's terrible formula, and accidentally succeed in creating a much better toothpaste. Their attempts to convince Proudfoot of its merits are foiled by Proudfoot's assistant, Macreedy. They then read a newspaper article about the forthcoming launch of a rocket from a British base carrying a satellite which will continuously broadcast a taped message of peace from the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

, and conceive a plan. They record an impromptu commercial for the new formula Dreem and, with the help of an ex-convict friend Sam Field and actress Jill Venner, manage to smuggle it aboard the rocket in place of the President's speech, guaranteeing Proudfoot years of free advertising. The resulting publicity ensures the product's success and the pair are promoted.

Cast

as David Cookson *

as Sam Field * Ronnie Stevens as Brian Dexter *

as Jill Venner *

as Colonel J.J. Proudfoot / The Dean *

Reginald Beckwith William Reginald Beckwith (2 November 190826 June 1965) was an English film and television actor, who made over one hundred film and television appearances in his career. He died of a heart attack aged 56. Beckwith was also a film critic and ...

as Mr. Duff *

as Macreedy * Charles Hawtrey as Mr. Roper *

Richard Caldicot Richard Caldicot (7 October 1908 – 16 October 1995) was an English actor famed for his role of Commander (later Captain) Povey in the BBC radio series ''The Navy Lark''. He also appeared often on television, memorably as the obstetrician del ...

as Prison Governor *

Cyril Chamberlain Cyril Chamberlain (8 March 1909 – 5 December 1974) was an English film and television actor. He appeared in a number of the early ''Carry On'', ''Doctor'' and ''St. Trinian's'' films. Chamberlain was born on 8 March 1909 in London and died ...

as Director * David Horne as Admiral Southbound *

Graham Stark Graham William Stark (20 January 1922 – 29 October 2013) was an English comedian, actor, writer and director. Early life The son of a purser on transatlantic liners,

as Sourfaced Man *

Charlotte Mitchell Charlotte Mitchell (born Edna Winifred Mitchell; 23 July 1926 – 2 May 2012) was an English actress and poet. Biography In the 1950s she provided lyrics, sketches, and occasionally acted in revues on London's West End. She was especially ...

as Mrs Burke *

Arthur Mullard Arthur Ernest Mullard (né Mullord; 19 September 1910His obituary in ''The Times'' gives his date of birth as 10 November 1910 but conflicts with the birthdate given in his death registration. His year of birth appears as 1908, 1910, 1912 and 1 ...

(uncredited) *

Andria Lawrence Andria Lawrence (born Maureen Smith, 20 June 1936) is an English actress, best known for her roles in ''On the Buses'', and in '' Coronation Street'' as Janet Stockwell. Career Andria Lawrence is best remembered for her appearances in both the ...

(uncredited)

Legacy

The studio logos, opening credits and a brief portion of the opening scene is added to the start of ''

Monty Python and the Holy Grail ''Monty Python and the Holy Grail'' is a 1975 British comedy film satirizing the Arthurian legend, written and performed by the Monty Python comedy group (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin) an ...

'' on its special edition DVD. The clip ends with a spluttering, unseen "projectionist" realising he has played the wrong film. A "slide" then appears urging the audience to wait one moment please while the operator changes reels.Bradshaw, Peter (15 October 2015)
''Monty Python and the Holy Grail review – timelessly brilliant''
''The Guardian''. Retrieved 8 December 2021.

References

External links

* {{C. M. Pennington-Richards 1961 films 1961 comedy films British black-and-white films British comedy films British sequel films Films directed by C. M. Pennington-Richards Films about advertising 1960s English-language films 1960s British films