''Glad Tidings'' is a 1953 British

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Wolf Rilla Wolf Peter Rilla (16 March 1920 – 19 October 2005) was a film director and writer of German background, although he worked mainly in the United Kingdom. Rilla is known for directing ''Village of the Damned (1960 film), Village of the Damned'' ( ...

and starring

Barbara Kelly Barbara Kelly (5 October 1923 – 15 January 2007) was a Canadian-British actress, best known for her television roles in the United Kingdom opposite her husband Bernard Braden in the 1950s and 1960s, and for many appearances as a panelist ...

Raymond Huntley Horace Raymond Huntley (23 April 1904 – 15 June 1990) was an English actor who appeared in dozens of British films from the 1930s to the 1970s. He also appeared in the ITV period drama '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' as the pragmatic family so ...

and Ronald Howard. It was based on the play of the same title by R. F. Delderfield and made at the

Nettlefold Studios Walton Studios, previously named Hepworth Studios and Nettlefold Studios, was a film production studio in Walton-on-Thames in Surrey, England.Walton-on-Thames Walton-on-Thames, locally known as Walton, is a market town on the south bank of the Thames in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Walton forms part of the Greater London built-up area, within the KT postcode and is served by a wide ran ...

. The film's

art direction Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the visi ...

was by

John Stoll John Stoll (13 December 1913 – 25 June 1990) was a British art director. He won an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film ''Lawrence of Arabia''. During the 1950s, he worked largely on low-budget British feature f ...

. The backers

Eros Films Eros Films was a British film distribution and, later, production company, in operation from May 1947 to June 1961. It was founded by three brothers: Philip, Sydney, and Michael Hyams. Hyams Bros The Hyams' father was a Russian immigrant baker, ...

were pleased enough with the film's success to adapt another Delderfield play as ''

Where There's a Will Where may refer to: * Where?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * where (command), a shell command * Where (SQL), a database language clause * Where.com, a provider of location-based applications via mobile phones * ''Where'' (magazine), a serie ...

'' in 1955.

Plot

A retired

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

officer returns home to his sleepy little rural community with an attractive new American fiancée, to the initial resentment of his children.

Cast

as Kay Stuart *

as Tom Forester * Ronald Howard as Corporal Nicholas Brayne *

Jean Lodge Jean Margaret Lodge (born 4 August 1927) is an English stage, film and television actress. Career In 1952 she appeared alongside Claude Hulbert in the West End in Constance Cox's '' Lord Arthur Savile's Crime''. In 1954 she starred in William ...

as Celia Forester *

Terence Alexander Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English film and television actor, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British TV drama '' Bergerac'', which ran for nine series on BBC One between 1981 and 1991. ...

as Flight Lieutenant Spud Cusack * Diana Calderwood as Josephine Forester *

Laurence Payne Laurence Stanley Payne (5 June 1919 – 23 February 2009) was an English actor and novelist. Early life Payne was born in London. His father died when he was three years old, and he and his elder brother and sister were brought up by their ...

as Clive Askham *

Arthur Howard Arthur Howard (born Arthur John Steiner; 18 January 1910 – 18 June 1995) was an English stage, film and television actor. Life and career Born in Camberwell, London, Howard was the younger son of Lilian (née Blumberg) and Ferdinand "Frank" ...

as Mr. Boddington * Brian Smith as Derek Forester * Yvette Wyatt as Miggs Forester * Doris Yorke as Mrs. Boddington *

Stella Richman Stella Richman (9 November 1922 – 24 May 2002) was a British television producer. Biography Originally an actress—she had a bit part in the second episode of ''The Quatermass Experiment'' in 1953—Richman was appointed as a script editor o ...

as Anna * Harry Green as The Golfer *

John Warren John Warren may refer to: Medicine * John Warren (surgeon) (1753–1815), American surgeon during the Revolutionary War * John Collins Warren (1778–1856), American surgeon * John Collins Warren Jr. (1842–1927), American surgeon, son of John C ...

as Club Barman * Louis Matto as Waiter *

Peter Forbes-Robertson Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

as Reception Clerk

Production

The film was made at

, England, and on location. A collection of then-and-now location stills and corresponding contemporary photographs is hosted at reelstreets.com.

Critical reception

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' dismissed the film as a "Plodding domestic trifle", whereas ''

Sky Cinema Sky Cinema is a British subscription film service owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). In the United Kingdom, Sky Cinema channels currently broadcast on the Sky satellite and Virgin Media cable platforms, and in addition Sky Cinema on ...

'' approved the fact that the piece provided "Raymond Huntley and Barbara Kelly (

Bernard Braden Bernard Chastey Braden (16 May 1916 – 2 February 1993) was a Canadian-born British actor and comedian, who is best known for his appearances in UK television and radio shows. Life Braden was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and educated ...

's wife) with rare leading roles in a feature film. Huntley gets a chance to break away from his stuffy bureaucrats and he's a pleasure to watch."

References

Bibliography

* Chibnall, Steve & McFarlane, Brian. ''The British 'B' Film''. Palgrave MacMillan, 2009.

External links

*
''Glad Tidings''
at

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

1953 films British comedy films British black-and-white films 1953 comedy films Films directed by Wolf Rilla Films shot at Nettlefold Studios British films based on plays Films shot in England Films set in England Films set in London 1950s English-language films 1950s British films {{1950s-UK-comedy-film-stub