''Georgy Girl'' is a 1966 British romantic comedy-drama, starring

Lynn Redgrave Lynn Rachel Redgrave (8 March 1943 – 2 May 2010) was an English actress. She won two Golden Globe Awards throughout her career. A member of the Redgrave family of actors, Lynn trained in London before making her theatrical debut in 1962. B ...

in the title role, with Charlotte Rampling, Alan Bates, and James Mason. Directed by

Silvio Narizzano Silvio Narizzano (8 February 192726 July 2011) was a Canadian film and television director who worked primarily in the United Kingdom. His directorial credits included the critically acclaimed films '' Georgy Girl'' (1966) and ''Loot'' (1970), w ...

, the film was based on the 1965 novel by

Margaret Forster Margaret Forster (25 May 1938 – 8 February 2016) was an English novelist, biographer, memoirist, historian and critic, best known for the 1965 novel ''Georgy Girl'', made into a successful film of the same name, which inspired a hit song by T ...

. The plot follows the story of a virginal young woman in 1960s Swinging London who is faced with a dilemma when she is pursued by her father's older employer and the young lover of her promiscuous, pregnant flatmate.

Plot

The opening credits show the title character walking through the streets of London and being tempted into a hairdressers where she has her hair set in a far more contemporary style. She immediately changes her mind, and runs through the streets until she reaches a public lavatory. Once there, she submerges her hair in a sink-full of water, happy to return to her previously unkempt hairstyle. Georgina ("Georgy") Parkin (

) is a 22-year-old Londoner who has considerable musical talent, is well-educated, and has an engaging, unpretentious character. At the same time, she believes herself to be plain and slightly overweight, she dresses haphazardly, and she is incredibly naïve on the subjects of love and flirtation. She has never had a boyfriend. She has an inventive imagination and loves children. Her parents are live-in employees of successful businessman James Leamington ( James Mason), who runs a children's home. Leamington is 49 and has a loveless, childless marriage with Ellen (

Rachel Kempson Rachel, Lady Redgrave (28 May 1910 – 24 May 2003), known primarily by her birth name Rachel Kempson, was an English actress. She married Sir Michael Redgrave, and was the matriarch of the famous acting dynasty. Career Kempson trained at RADA ...

). He watched Georgy grew up and treated her as if he were her second father. He provided for her private education at a Swiss finishing school and for a studio in his home, where she teaches dance to children. Leamington thinks Georgy "owes him" for all he has done. Georgy Girl - When the Stars Begin to Fall - Cash Box ad 1966

Georgy Girl - When the Stars Begin to Fall - Cash Box ad 1966

As Georgy has become a young woman, his feelings for her have become more than fatherly: James offers Georgy a legal contract, proposing to supply her with the luxuries of life in return for her becoming his mistress. Georgy sidesteps his proposal by never giving him a direct response; Leamington's business-like language and manner (and awkward inability to express any affection for her) leave her cold. Georgy's flatmate is the beautiful Meredith ( Charlotte Rampling), who is a violinist in an orchestra, but is otherwise a shallow woman who lives for her own pleasures. She treats the meekly compliant Georgy like an unpaid servant. Georgy has a crush on Meredith's boyfriend Jos Jones ( Alan Bates) and is happy to accommodate Meredith in order to spend time with Jos. She cooks for him and they play

Scrabble ''Scrabble'' is a word game in which two to four players score points by placing tiles, each bearing a single letter, onto a game board divided into a 15×15 grid of squares. The tiles must form words that, in crossword fashion, read left t ...

together. When Meredith discovers that she is pregnant by Jos, they get married. She tells him bluntly that she has aborted two of his children, but she wants to marry because she is "bored." Jos moves in with the two young women. He becomes disillusioned with Meredith and begins to find himself attracted to Georgy, who convinces Leamington to buy several expensive items for the baby's care. While in the midst of an argument with Meredith over her cavalier attitude to her pregnancy, Jos suddenly kisses Georgy and tells her that he loves her. Georgy flees the apartment onto the streets of London, where Jos follows her, screaming over and over again that he loves her as he pursues her. The two return to the flat, where they have sex, after which there is a knock at the door by Peggy, a friend of Meredith, who tells Jos that Meredith has gone to the hospital to give birth. Jos and Georgy go to the hospital, where Georgy tries to comfort Meredith while she is in labour. Jos and Georgy's secret love affair continues. Meredith gives birth to a daughter they name Sara. Because she has no interest in the baby and has tired of Jos, she announces that she plans to put the child up for adoption and divorce him. Georgy and Jos set up home together in the flat, caring for baby Sara and living as a common-law married couple. It becomes clear that Georgy cares more for the baby than for having an adult relationship with Jos. Their relationship ends when Jos tires of a father's responsibilities; he abandons her and his baby. Now that Georgy is the sole caregiver of a baby to whom she has no blood ties, Social Services wishes to remove baby Sara from her care. In the recent past, Mr Leamington's wife suddenly died. Leamington, who was unable to express his true feelings for Georgy while his wife was alive, now finds himself free to express his love for her, so he proposes marriage. Georgy accepts because this will allow her to keep Sara. The two marry despite the difference in their backgrounds and ages. They officially adopt Sara, making Georgy a mother. As the newlyweds are chauffeured away from their wedding, Georgy ignores her new husband, devoting all her attention to baby Sara.

Cast

as Georgina "Georgy" Parkin * James Mason as James Leamington * Alan Bates as Jos Jones * Charlotte Rampling as Meredith * Bill Owen as Ted Parkin * Clare Kelly as Doris Parkin *

(Lynn Redgrave's mother) as Ellen Leamington *

Denise Coffey Denise Dorothy Coffey (12 December 1936 – 24 March 2022) was an English actress, director and playwright. Early life Coffey was born in Aldershot in 1936, the only child of Dorothy (''née'' Malcolm), and her husband, Denis Coffey, an Irishm ...

as Peg *

Peggy Thorpe-Bates Peggy Thorpe-Bates (11 August 1914 – 26 December 1989) was an English actress who appeared in the first three series of '' Rumpole of the Bailey'' as Rumpole's fearsome wife Hilda. She also appeared in numerous other supporting roles on bot ...

as Hospital Sister *

Dandy Nichols Dandy Nichols (born Daisy Sander; 21 May 1907 – 6 February 1986) was an English actress best known for her role as Else Garnett, the long-suffering wife of the character Alf Garnett who was a parody of a working class Tory, in the BBC s ...

as Hospital Nurse *

Dorothy Alison Dorothy Alison (4 April 1925 – 17 January 1992) was an Australian stage, film and television actress Biography Dorothy Alison was born in the New South Wales mining city of Broken Hill and educated at Sydney Girls High School. She moved t ...

as Health Visitor *

Terence Soall Terence Soall (22 March 1920 – 10 August 2006) was an English actor who appeared in numerous television productions over a 50-year period and in over 100 films. Early life He was born into a working-class family in Tottenham, North London. Aft ...

as Salesman * Ian Dunn as Baby Sara

Production

Locations

Several scenes were filmed in north London, in

Belsize Park Belsize Park is an affluent residential area of Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden (the inner north-west of London), England. The residential streets are lined with mews houses and Georgian and Victorian villas. Some nearby localities ar ...

and

Little Venice Little Venice is a district in West London, England, around the junction of the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, the Regent's Canal, and the entrance to Paddington Basin. The junction forms a triangular shape basin. Many of the buildi ...

, notably outside a canalside house on Maida Avenue.

Title song

The title song "

Georgy Girl ''Georgy Girl'' is a 1966 British romantic comedy-drama, starring Lynn Redgrave in the titular role, with Charlotte Rampling, Alan Bates, and James Mason. Directed by Silvio Narizzano, the film was based on the 1965 novel by Margaret Forster. ...

", written by

Tom Springfield Tom Springfield (born Dionysius Patrick O'Brien, 2 July 1934 – 27 July 2022) was an English musician, songwriter and record producer who was prominent in the 1960s folk and pop music scene. He was the older brother of singer Dusty Springfiel ...

and

Jim Dale Jim Dale (born James Smith; 15 August 1935) is an English actor, composer, director, narrator, singer and songwriter. In the United Kingdom he is known as a pop singer of the 1950s who became a leading actor at the National Theatre. In Britis ...

, was recorded by Australian band

The Seekers The Seekers were an Australian folk-influenced pop quartet, originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States. They were ...

. A single release of the song (with somewhat different lyrics) topped the singles chart in Australia, and was a top 10 hit in both the UK and the U.S. (#2 for two weeks). It was the 56th biggest British hit of 1967, and the 57th biggest American hit of 1967. It became a

gold record Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

and was nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Original Song from a Motion Picture category.

Reception

The film was successful at the box office. By 1967, it had earned an estimated $7 million in the United States and $6 million in other countries.Alexander Walker ''Hollywood, England'', Stein and Day, 1974 p.310 By the end of 1967, it had earned $7,330,000 in rentals in North America according to rentals accruing to the distributors.

Awards and nominations

Adaptation

In 1970, the film was the basis for an unsuccessful Broadway musical titled '' Georgy''. It was adapted for BBC Radio 4 in 2013 by Rhiannon Tise.

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{Allmovie title, 19467, Georgy Girl 1966 films 1960s romantic comedy-drama films British black-and-white films British romantic comedy-drama films Columbia Pictures films Films based on British novels Films based on romance novels Films directed by Silvio Narizzano Films featuring a Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe winning performance Films set in London 1966 drama films 1960s English-language films 1960s British films