''Our Miss Fred'' is a 1972 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 ...

starring

Danny La Rue Danny La Rue, (born Daniel Patrick Carroll, 26 July 1927 – 31 May 2009) was an Irish singer and entertainer, best known for his on-stage drag queen, drag persona. He performed in drag and also as himself in theatrical productions, television ...

, set during

World War II 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 ...

. The film was also known by its video release titles ''Beyond the Call of Duty'' (Canada) and ''Operation: Fred'' (US). In the 1960s, La Rue was one of the highest paid entertainers in Britain, but this represents his only starring role in a feature film.

Plot

English Shakespearean actor Fred Wimbush is called up to serve in the British army during World War II. His skills result in his being asked to entertain the troops in France- and is asked to perform in drag. However, the Germans capture his position. Unless he continues his disguise in women's clothes, Fred fears he will be shot as a spy. He has to fend off both French locals and German troops. The double entendres and bullets fly as he attempts his escape in the company of the pupils from an English girls' finishing school. On a country lane he encounters Miss Flodden and Miss Lockhart who run a nearby finishing school. They ask him to fix their car ("Agatha") and is introduced to their five pupils: four English and one American, who are hiding in a barn. They suggest that Fred loses his flamboyant dress and instead dresses as a teacher. They have an escaped airman (Smallpiece) hidden in a shed. Fred reveals his true identity to him. Fred finds a Nazi uniform to disguise Smallpiece. Fred drives around the French countryside with the girls encountering the Germans as he goes. They head for an airfield and get in pretending to be a group of girls from the local brothel. Although they fail to catch a plane they attach "Agatha" to a blimp and float off to safety. However, in the final scene Fred is entertaining a group of Germans, in drag, singing " Hitler Has Only Got One Ball".

Sample gag

'Given his experience as a (Shakespearean) actor, (Fred) ends up...working as an entertainer for the troops. And playing all the female parts. He's not entirely happy... "Look at me, dressed like a bird," he grumbles. "They used to come from miles away to see my

Titus Andronicus ''Titus Andronicus'' is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written between 1588 and 1593, probably in collaboration with George Peele. It is thought to be Shakespeare's first tragedy and is often seen ...

Cast

- Fred Wimbush *

Alfred Marks Alfred Edward Marks OBE (born Alfred Edward Touchinsky; 28 January 19211 July 1996) was a British actor and comedian. In his 60-year career, he played dramatic and comedy roles in numerous television programmes, stage shows and films. His self- ...

- General Brincker *

Lance Percival John Lancelot Blades Percival (26 July 1933 – 6 January 2015), known as Lance Percival, was an English actor, comedian and singer, best known for his appearances in satirical comedy television shows of the early 1960s and his ability to impro ...

- Squadron Leader Smallpiece *

Lally Bowers Kathleen "Lally" Bowers (21 January 1914 – 18 July 1984) was an English actress. Bowers was born in Oldham, Lancashire, where she was educated at Hulme Grammar School. She worked as a secretary before walking-on and understudying at the ...

- Miss Flodden * Frances de la Tour - Miss Lockhart *

Walter Gotell Walter Jack Gotell (15 March 1924 – 5 May 1997) was a German actor, known for his role as General Gogol, head of the KGB, in the Roger Moore-era of the James Bond film series,Tom VallancObituary: Walter Gotell ''The Independent'', 20 June 1 ...

- Schmidt * Kristin Hatfield - Hilary * Jenny Twigge - Judith * Vanessa Furse - Prunella *

Seretta Wilson Serretta Diane Wilson (born 8 September 1951, Fairfax, Virginia) ''Virginia, Birth Records, 1912-2014, Delayed Birth Records, 1854-1911'' is an American-born British television and film actress. She has played parts in '' Thriller'' (1975), ''T ...

- Elvira *Sophie Batchelor - Emma *

John Barrard John Barrard (12 September 1924 – 13 October 2013) was a British character actor who had a career spanning five decades and who perhaps is best known for playing Dooley, Santa's No. 2, in '' Santa Claus: The Movie'' (1985). Barrard's te ...

- Patron *

Nancy Nevinson Nancy Nevinson (26 July 1918 – 25 January 2012) was a British actress. She was born Nancy Ezekiel, one of four children of Reemah (née Kadoorie) and David Ezekiel, members of the Baghdadi-Jewish community of Calcutta, India, during the Raj. ...

- Patron's Wife *

Cyril Shaps Cyril Leonard Shaps (13 October 1923 – 1 January 2003) was an English actor of radio, television and film, with a career spanning over seven decades. Early radio Shaps was born in the East End of London to Polish-Jewish parents; his father ...

- Doctor *

Frank Thornton Frank Thornton Ball (15 January 192116 March 2013), professionally known as Frank Thornton, was an English actor. He was known for playing Captain Peacock in ''Are You Being Served?'' and its sequel ''Grace & Favour'' (''Are You Being Served? ...

- British Colonel *

André Maranne André Maranne (14 May 1926 – 12 April 2021) was a French-English actor best known for playing roles in English-language films beginning in the mid-1950s. Life and career Born André Gaston Maillol in Toulouse, France, Maranne's best known r ...

- French Resistance Fighter *

Barrie Gosney Barrie Gosney (1926, Surrey – 24 January 2008) was a British television, film and theatrical actor. In a career spanning five decades, Gosney played roles in ''Up Pompeii'', ''Last of the Summer Wine'', ''Believe Nothing'', ''Time Gentlemen P ...

- Bertie *

David Ellen David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

- Bobby *

Toni Palmer Toni, Toñi or Tóni is a unisex given name. In Spanish, Italian, Croatian and Finnish, it is a masculine given name used as a short form of the names derived from Antonius like Antonio, Ante or Anttoni. In Danish, English, Finnish, Norwegia ...

- Vendeuse *

Jennifer Croxton Jennifer Croxton (born 1944 in Cambridge) is a British actress. Career Croxton guest-starred as Lady Diana Forbes-Blakeney opposite Patrick Macnee in the 1969 episode of ''The Avengers (TV series), The Avengers'', ''Killers'', a role which remai ...

- Jeanette *

Anthony Sagar Anthony Sagar (19 June 1920 – 24 January 1973) was an English character actor and a member of the Royal National Theatre, National Theatre. He was prolific screen performer and appeared in many films (including seven of the ''Carry On (franchi ...

- R.S.M. *

Noel Coleman Noel Coleman (26 November 1919 – 12 October 2007) was a RADA-trained English actor who appeared in many television roles. He appeared in the 1969 '' Doctor Who'' serial ''The War Games'' as General Smythe and he appeared in '' Red Dwarf'' as ...

- Senior RAF officer *

Peter Greenwell Peter Ashley Greenwell (12 August 1929, Hampton-in-Arden – 4 June 2006, Dénia) was an English composer and pianist best known as an accompanist to Noël Coward. He wrote the music for the songs of '' The Crooked Mile'' (1959) and other musical ...

- M.C. *

Gertan Klauber George Gertan Klauber (5 March 1932 – 1 August 2008) was a British bit part character actor. Klauber was born in Czechoslovakia, and after training at the Birmingham Theatre School, his stage appearances included with the RSC and the Nati ...

- German Officer

Production

The film was constructed specifically as a vehicle for La Rue. Filming took place in June 1972.

Reception

Box office

The film was a box office disappointment.

Critical reception

In "The Spinning image", Graeme Clark called the film, "a goodnatured comedy which, while you can see why La Rue's prospects in cinema might have been limited, also proved he was no dead loss in front of the camera either." In the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'', David McGillivray wrote, "Danny La Rue, Britain's most popular female impersonator during the 1970's, seems terribly constricted in his one major film, an old-fashioned wartime comedy written by distinguished playwright

Hugh Leonard Hugh Leonard (9 November 1926 – 12 February 2009) was an Irish dramatist, television writer, and essayist. In a career that spanned 50 years, Leonard wrote nearly 30 full-length plays, 10 one-act plays, three volumes of essay, two autobiograph ...

." Psychotic Cinema wrote, "this is a fun movie with plenty of sexual innuendo jokes and a rousing rendition of the popular song Hitler Has Only Got One Ball." Movies About Girls wrote of La Rue, "he actually comes across remarkably well on screen...It’s all terrifically entertaining... La Rue can’t hide the fact that he’s loving every minute of it. You wouldn’t want him to either, because each and every smirk and grin means you can’t help but enjoy yourself along with him."

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0069054
''Our Miss Fred''
at BFI 1972 LGBT-related films 1970s historical comedy films 1972 films British historical comedy films Films directed by Bob Kellett British World War II films Cross-dressing in British films EMI Films films Films about actors Films set in France Films with screenplays by Hugh Leonard Films with screenplays by Terence Feely Films with screenplays by Ted Willis, Baron Willis Films produced by Josephine Douglas Films scored by Peter Greenwell 1970s English-language films 1970s British films