''Old Mother Riley, Headmistress'' is a low budget black and white 1950 British comedy film, starring Arthur Lucan and

Kitty McShane Kathleen "Kitty" McShane (19 May 1897 – 24 March 1964) was an Irish actress, best known as the wife and acting partner of Arthur Lucan, with whom she appeared in a series of ''Old Mother Riley'' stage shows and films from the 1930s to the ...

. The 13th film in the Old Mother Riley series, it features the Luton Girls Choir playing many of Mother Riley's pupils.

Plot summary

Daughter Kitty is sacked from her job as music teacher at an exclusive girls school, but Mother Riley unexpectedly comes into an inheritance, and decides to buy the girls finishing school and give Kitty her job back. Mother Riley soon establishes herself as headmistress at St. Mildred's School for Young Ladies, and throws herself into her new role with vigour, whether it's taking P.E. lessons, brazenly cheating on Sports Day, or confronting the haunted school piano.

Cast

* Arthur Lucan as Daphne Snowdrop Bluebell Riley *

as Kitty Riley *

The Luton Girls Choir The Luton Girls Choir was an English vocal ensemble that performed between 1936 and 1977, and made popular radio broadcasts and recordings between the 1940s and 1960s. It was established and directed throughout its existence by Arthur Ernest Davi ...

as School choir * Willer Neal as Bill Travers * Cyril Smith as Maltby *

C. Denier Warren Charles Denier Warren (29 July 1889 – 27 August 1971) was an Anglo-American actor who appeared extensively on stage and screen from the early 1930s to late 1960s, mostly in Great Britain. Life He was born in Chicago the son of Charles Warren ...

as Clifton Hill * Enid Hewitt as Miss Helen Carruthers * Paul Sheridan as Nixon * Harry Herbert as Simon * Oswald Waller as Copeland * Jenny Mathot as Mlle Leblanc * Myrette Morven as Miss Chester * Ethel Royal as Lady Meersham * Bill Stephens as Mayor * Catherine Carleton as Miss Ashton * Dorothy Darke as Mrs Shaw * Vi Kaley as 1st laundry girl * Jaqueline Stanley as 2nd laundry girl * Maisie ... Beth Ross as Maisie * Madge Brindley as Mrs Clarke * Pamela Hill as Woman * Graham Tonbridge as Chauffeur *

Patricia Owens Patricia Molly Owens (January 17, 1925 – August 31, 2000) was a Canadian-born American actress, working in Hollywood. She appeared in about 40 films and 10 television episodes in a career lasting from 1943 to 1968. Early work Owens moved ...

Genine Graham Genine Graham (9 December 1926, London – 11 May 1997, London) was an English actress. She trained at LAMDA, and played the title role of the mermaid ''Miranda'' in the original West End production of Peter Blackmore's play, later filmed with G ...

, Joy Frankau, Betty Benson, Mary Thompson, Suzanne Wilde, Doorn Van Steyne, Coral Woods, Joy Adams, Cora Farrel, Sally Owen, Lyn James, Ursula Hopwood, and Diana Connell as girls

Critical reception

*Anthony Nield wrote in ''The Digital Fix'', " whilst the idea of Old Mother Riley owning her own girls’ school should provide plenty of comic mileage, we’re still faced with some pointless musical numbers to pad things out...(but) there’s a chirpiness and a punch in the screenplay which is hard not to enjoy. Of course, any level of sophistication is kept at a bare minimum (Lucan was never the subtlest of actors; he performed for the camera just as he did on the stage), but in its own way …Headmistress has an energy equal to that of, say, '' Hellzapoppin''' or the Marx Brothers '' A Night in Casablanca'', even if both are far superior and much funnier. There’s a non-stop quality to the gags which, whilst the film may ultimately be forgettable, amounts to great deal of fun. Certainly, for a thirteenth entry in a big screen franchise (and one made almost as many years after the first), it’s far better than we should rightfully expect." *'' TV Guide'' noted, "a poor addition to the "Old Mother Riley" stable...If you see only one "Old Mother Riley" film in your lifetime, don't make it this one." *"Fielding's Review" wrote, "lots of fun gags in this one. Along with

Old Mother Riley Meets the Vampire ''Mother Riley Meets the Vampire'', also known as ''Vampire Over London'' or ''My Son, the Vampire'', is a 1952 British horror comedy film directed by John Gilling, starring Arthur Lucan and Bela Lugosi that was filmed at Nettlefold Studios. ...

, it’s the best of the set."

References

External links

* {{John Harlow 1950 films 1950 comedy films British comedy films Films directed by John Harlow British black-and-white films 1950s English-language films 1950s British films