''The March Hare'' is a 1956

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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

George More O'Ferrall Edward George More O'Ferrall (4 July 1907 – 18 March 1982) was a pioneering British film and television producer and director, as well as an actor. Biography More O'Ferrall was born in Bristol, England, to an aristocratic Anglo-Irish family. ...

and starring Peggy Cummins,

Terence Morgan Terence Ivor Grant Morgan (8 December 1921 – 25 August 2005) was an English actor in theatre, cinema and television. He played many "villain" roles in British film but is probably best remembered for his starring role in the TV historical ...

Martita Hunt Martita Edith Hunt (30 January 190013 June 1969) was an Argentine-born British theatre and film actress. She had a dominant stage presence and played a wide range of powerful characters. She is best remembered for her performance as Miss Havi ...

and

Cyril Cusack Cyril James Cusack (26 November 1910 – 7 October 1993) was an Irish stage and screen actor with a career that spanned more than 70 years. During his lifetime, he was considered one of Ireland’s finest thespians, and was renowned for his int ...

. The film follows the efforts in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

to turn a seemingly useless

racing horse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

, called The March Hare, into a

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

-winner.

Plot

The film begins at

Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...

. Sir Charles Hare (Terence Morgan) is an Irish baronet who loses his ancestral home and its racing stables after someone fixes a race that Hare has gambled on. Forced to sell his estate, he decides to stay on when the new American owner's attractive daughter Pat (Peggy Cummins) mistakes him for a groom. Playing along with her mistake, romance develops between the two. Meanwhile, Hare's aunt Lady Anne (Martita Hunt) and his friend Col Keene (

Wilfrid Hyde-White Wilfrid Hyde-White (12 May 1903 – 6 May 1991) was a British character actor of stage, film and television. He achieved international recognition for his role as Colonel Pickering in the film version of the musical ''My Fair Lady'' (1964). Ea ...

), save one colt from the sale, and rear it with the help of Mangan (Cyril Cusack), who is invariably drunk but has strong control over the horse by invoking the power of the fairies. Hare names the colt "The March Hare". We jump two years to a racecourse where Peggy discovers Sir Charles's true identity and "The March Hare" only manages to race after Mangan calms the horse using fairy words. Hare and Pat go for a date in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. After Mangan falls ill, he becomes teetotal, which restores his health but means he can no longer remember the fairy words. Derby Day arrives and Hare needs to track down Mangan... Lady Anne has got him drunk in the pub in the hope that it will restore his memory of the fairy words. They get him to the track in time to whisper his magic words to the horse. As the race starts March Hare lags behind: it appears that someone has sabotaged the race again, but March Hare forges forward and wins. Sir Charles is rich again and Pat is happy to marry him.

Cast

Critical reception

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 ...

'',

Tony Sloman Anthony B. Sloman (born 6 May 1945 in Waltham Abbey, Essex) is an English film producer and screenwriter. Tony Sloman is a cinema critic and historian, whose long career has encompassed many facets of film making. He has worked intermitten ...

gave the film three out of five stars, and wrote, "Best remembered (if at all) for Philip Green's jaunty theme music, this British Lion horse-racing romp gains from the fact that it was photographed in colour and

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

by the great Jack Hildyard. It also has good-looking leads in handsome Terence Morgan and sultry Peggy Cummins who, together with a sly performance from Cyril Cusack, keep the whole thing a good deal more watchable than it deserves to be. Comedy fans might care to note the pre-

Carry On Carry On may refer to: * ''Carry On'' (franchise), a British comedy media franchise *Carry-on luggage or hand luggage, luggage that is carried into the passenger compartment * ''Carry On'' (film), a 1927 British silent film * ''Carry On'' (novel), ...

casting of Charles Hawtrey, while Wilfrid Hyde White also puts in an appearance."

References

External links

* 1956 films British sports comedy films 1950s sports comedy films Films set in Ireland British horse racing films 1956 comedy films 1950s English-language films 1950s British films {{1950s-UK-comedy-film-stub