''Steptoe and Son'' is a 1972 British

comedy drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple co ...

film and a spin-off from the popular British television comedy series of the same name about father-and-son rag-and-bone dealers. It starred

Wilfrid Brambell Henry Wilfrid Brambell (22 March 1912 – 18 January 1985) was an Irish television and film actor, best remembered for playing the grubby rag-and-bone man Albert Steptoe alongside Harry H. Corbett in the long-running BBC television sitcom '' ...

and

Harry H. Corbett Harry H. Corbett OBE (28 February 1925 – 21 March 1982) was an English actor and comedian, best remembered for playing rag-and-bone man Harold Steptoe alongside Wilfrid Brambell in the long-running BBC television sitcom ''Steptoe and Son'' ( ...

as the eponymous characters, Albert and Harold Steptoe respectively, and features

Carolyn Seymour Carolyn Seymour is an English actress, best known for portraying the role of Abby Grant in the BBC series '' Survivors'' (1975), and Queen Myrrah in the '' Gears of War'' franchise. Career Born Carolyn von Benckendorf in Buckinghamshire to an ...

. A sequel, ''

Steptoe and Son Ride Again ''Steptoe and Son Ride Again'' is a 1973 British comedy film. It is a sequel to the film ''Steptoe and Son (film), Steptoe and Son'' (1972) based on Steptoe and Son, the television series. As usual, the film starred Wilfrid Brambell and Harry H. C ...

'', was released the following year.

Plot

During a stag do at a local football club, Harold meets one of the acts, a stripper called Zita. After a whirlwind romance, the couple are married, although the actual wedding ceremony is delayed when Albert, acting as

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony and performs the first speech at the wedding. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be ...

, loses the ring somewhere in the yard. They eventually find it in a pile of horse manure, and since they have no time to clean up, the smell of the manure on their clothes has noses twitching in church. Harold and Zita fly to Spain for their

honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds immediately after their wedding, to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase ...

, but Albert refuses to be left behind. His constant presence begins to drive a wedge between Harold and Zita. When they are finally alone and begin to consummate their marriage, they are interrupted by Albert's cries of distress from the adjoining room, and discover that he has contracted

food poisoning Foodborne illness (also foodborne disease and food poisoning) is any illness resulting from the spoilage of contaminated food by pathogenic bacteria, viruses, or parasites that contaminate food, as well as prions (the agents of mad cow disease) ...

from some of the local cuisine. The only available flight back home at short notice has only two seats, and Harold feels obliged to fly home with Albert, leaving Zita in Spain to follow as soon as possible. Back home, Albert quickly recovers, while Harold frets over Zita not writing. When he finally receives delayed postcards and a letter from her, she tells him she has decided their marriage cannot work and has taken up with a British holiday rep at the hotel where they were staying. Harold is heartbroken, and, despite his earlier scheming to get rid of Zita, Albert is sympathetic. Some months later, Harold tracks down Zita and finds that she is pregnant, and when he assumes he is the father she does not disabuse him. Harold offers to take care of them both and persuades Zita to go with him, but on returning home Albert makes it clear that he does not like her and she flees. A short while later, the two men find a baby in the horse's stable. Harold assumes that the child is Zita's, and, with Albert's help, takes on its rearing. They argue over what name to give the baby, with Albert insisting he have his name, and Harold eventually compromises by naming him Albert Jeremy at the christening but always refers to him as Jeremy. Returning from work one day, Harold finds the baby has been taken from his pram while Albert was asleep. An unsigned note left in the pram convinces Harold it is from Zita wanting the child back. Searching for her, Harold comes across her stripping in a local rugby club where she is grabbed by some men in the audience. Attempting to save her, Harold is beaten up and is only rescued when Zita and her musician save him by taking him into her dressing room. Harold hears a baby's cries but, when he pulls back a curtain, he finds a mixed-race baby. It turns out that Zita and her musician, who is black, are a couple. Harold then realises that 'Jeremy' was not Zita's baby and was not his child.

Cast

as Albert Steptoe *

as Harold Steptoe *

as Zita Steptoe *

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 Vicar *

Victor Maddern Victor Jack Maddern (16 March 1928 – 22 June 1993) was an English actor. He was described by ''The Telegraph'' as having "one of the most distinctive and eloquent faces in post-war British cinema." Life and career Born in Seven Kings, ...

as Chauffeur * Fred Griffiths as Barman * Joan Heath as Zita's mother * Fred McNaughton as Zita's father *

Lon Satton Lon Satton (born Alonzo Louis Lee Staton; February 11, 1927 – October 30, 2020) was an American singer and actor based in the United Kingdom. He is widely-known for originating the role of Poppa in the Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical ''Starlight ...

as Pianist *

Patrick Fyffe Patrick Fyffe (23 January 1942 – 11 May 2002) was an English female impersonator, best known for playing the character of Dame Hilda Bracket, alongside George Logan as Dr Evadne Hinge as the duo "Hinge and Bracket". Early life Fyffe was ...

as Arthur (as Perri St. Claire) *

Patsy Smart Patsy Smart (14 August 1918 – 6 February 1996) was an English actress, best remembered for her performance as Miss Roberts in the 1970s ITV television drama '' Upstairs, Downstairs''. She also appeared in: ''Danger Man'', '' Only When I Laug ...

as Mrs Hobbs * Mike Reid as Compere *

Alec Mango Alec Mango (16 March 1911 – 7 November 1989) was an English actor. He is best known for portraying El Supremo in the 1951 ''Captain Horatio Hornblower'', he also appeared in ''South of Algiers'' (1953), ''The Strange World of Planet X'' (1958 ...

as Hotel Doctor * Michael Da Costa as Hotel Manager * Enys Box as Traffic Warden *

Barrie Ingham Barrie Stanton Ingham (10 February 1932 – 23 January 2015) was an English actor, performing on stage and "in a handful of films." He was perhaps most widely known as "a prolific television actor". His notable work includes ''A Challenge for ...

as Terry

Production

The film had investment from the

Robert Stigwood Robert Colin Stigwood (16 April 1934 – 4 January 2016) was an Australian-born British-resident music entrepreneur, film producer and impresario, best known for managing Cream, Andy Gibb and the Bee Gees, theatrical productions like ''Hair'' ...

Organisation.

Reception

The film was a success at the box office and made a profit of five times its cost.

References

External links

* {{Galton and Simpson 1972 films 1972 comedy-drama films Adultery in films British comedy-drama films Films about dysfunctional families Films based on television series Films directed by Cliff Owen Films scored by Roy Budd Films scored by Ron Grainer Films set in London Films set in Spain Films shot in London British pregnancy films Steptoe and Son Films about striptease EMI Films films 1972 comedy films 1972 drama films 1970s English-language films 1970s British films