Francis Searle (14 March 1909 – 31 July 2002) was an English film director, writer and producer. He was active in the post-

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

cinema industry. Amongst the films he directed were ''

The Lady Craved Excitement ''The Lady Craved Excitement'' is a 1950 British comedy film directed by Francis Searle and written by John Gilling. It featured Hy Hazell, Michael Medwin and Sid James. An early Hammer film, it is significant as one of five films shot at Oakle ...

'' (1950), '' One Way Out'' (1955) and '' It All Goes to Show'' (1969). Searle's later projects were all short films, either comedies or dramas, with his final film being made in 1972.

Selected filmography

* ''

A Girl in a Million ''A Girl in a Million'' is a 1946 British comedy film. It is notable for featuring Joan Greenwood in an early starring role; and Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne in their comedy double act as two cricket-obsessed Englishmen, this time called Fot ...

'' (1946) * ''

Things Happen at Night ''Things Happen at Night'' is a 1947 British supernatural ghost comedy film directed by Francis Searle and starring Gordon Harker, Alfred Drayton, Robertson Hare and Garry Marsh. The film is based upon a stage play, ''The Poltergeist'', by Fran ...

'' (1947) * '' Man in Black'' (1949) * '' Celia'' (1949) * ''

A Case for PC 49 ''A Case for PC 49'' is a 1951 British mystery film directed by Francis Searle and starring Brian Reece, Joy Shelton and Christine Norden.Chibnall & MacFarlane p.79 It was made by Hammer Films at Bray Studios. The film was based on a popular ra ...

'' (1951) * ''

Cloudburst A cloudburst is an extreme amount of precipitation in a short period of time, sometimes accompanied by hail and thunder, which is capable of creating flood conditions. Cloudbursts can quickly dump large amounts of water, e.g. 25 mm of prec ...

'' (1951) * ''

Love's a Luxury ''Love's a Luxury'' is a 1952 British comedy film directed by Francis Searle and starring Hugh Wakefield, Derek Bond and Michael Medwin.Chibnall & McFarlane p.68 It was made by the Manchester-based Mancunian Films. Plot A theatre producer and an ...

'' (1952) * '' Never Look Back'' (1952) * ''

Profile Profile or profiles may refer to: Art, entertainment and media Music * ''Profile'' (Jan Akkerman album), 1973 * ''Profile'' (Githead album), 2005 * ''Profile'' (Pat Donohue album), 2005 * ''Profile'' (Duke Pearson album), 1959 * '' ''Profi ...

'' (1954) * ''

Undercover Girl ''Undercover Girl'' is a 1950 American film noir crime film directed by Joseph Pevney and starring Alexis Smith and Scott Brady. This was the second movie for Joseph Pevney as a director. Plot A young woman joins the police, and tries to track ...

'' (1958) * ''

The Diplomatic Corpse ''The Diplomatic Corpse'' is a 1958 British comedy thriller film directed by Montgomery Tully and starring Robin Bailey, Susan Shaw and Liam Redmond. It was produced as a second feature by ACT Films. The film's sets were designed by the art dire ...

'' (1958) * ''

Freedom to Die ''Freedom to Die'' is a 1961 British second feature crime thriller film directed by Francis Searle, starring Paul Maxwell and Felicity Young. Plot Craig Owen is an incarcerated criminal whose cellmate Felix knows about a safety deposit box with ...

'' (1961) * '' Ticket to Paradise'' (1961) * ''

Gaolbreak ''Gaolbreak'' is a 1962 British crime film directed by Francis Searle and starring Peter Reynolds, Avice Landone and Carol White. Plot A family of thieves plan a jewellery store robbery. One of them is the safecracking expert, and when he i ...

'' (1962) * ''

Emergency An emergency is an urgent, unexpected, and usually dangerous situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property, or environment and requires immediate action. Most emergencies require urgent intervention to prevent a worsening ...

'' (1962) * ''

Dead Man's Evidence ''Dead Man's Evidence'' is a 1962 British crime thriller film directed by Francis Searle. Its plot follows a British spy sent to Ireland to investigate the death of a former colleague who defected and who has been found dead on a beach. Cast * C ...

'' (1962) * ''

Night of the Prowler ''Night of the Prowler'' is a 1962 British crime thriller film directed by Francis Searle and starring Patrick Holt, Colette Wilde and John Horsley.Chibnall and McFarlane, p.154 It was shot at Shepperton Studios. The film's sets were designed b ...

'' (1962) * ''

The Marked One ''The Marked One'' is a 1963 British crime film directed by Francis Searle and starring William Lucas (who starred in several crime b-movies at this time), Zena Walker and Patrick Jordan. The screenplay concerns a forger whose daughter is thr ...

'' (1963) * ''Miss MacTaggart Won't Lie Down'' (1966) (short) * ''The Pale Faced Girl'' (1968) (short) * ''Talk of the Devil'' (1968) (short) * ''Gold Is Where You Find It'' (1968) (short) * '' It All Goes to Show'' (1969) (short) * '' A Hole Lot of Trouble'' (1971) (short) * ''A Couple of Beauties'' (1972) (short)

References

External links

* * English film directors 1909 births 2002 deaths {{UK-film-bio-stub