''Widecombe Fair'' is a 1928 British silent

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Norman Walker Norman Walker may refer to: *Norman Walker (bass) (1907–1963), English bass opera singer * Norman W. Walker (1886–1985), British-American raw food and alternative health advocate *Norman Walker (director) (1892–1963), British film director * ...

and starring

William Freshman William Freshman (1 November 1902, in Sydney, Australia – 1980 in London, England) was an Australian-born actor, scriptwriter and director. He moved to England as a child and worked in the British film industry, writing over 20 screenplays an ...

Marguerite Allan Helen Marguerite Allan (30 August 1905 – 29 January 1994) was a Russian-born British actress, who appeared in film roles between 1928 and 1942 Allan was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia before moving to the United Kingdom, where she married Ken ...

Moore Marriott George Thomas Moore Marriott (14 September 1885 – 11 December 1949) was an English character actor best remembered for the series of films he made with Will Hay. His first appearance with Hay was in the film '' Dandy Dick'' (1935), but he wa ...

and

Judd Green Judd Green (also credited as R. Judd Green; 1866–1932) was a British film actor of the silent era. He was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire in 1866 and made his first screen appearance in 1914. Selected filmography * '' The Third String'' (1914) ...

. The screenplay concerns a farmer who is able to save his farm when he digs up buried treasure. The film's plot was adapted from a 1913 novel by

Eden Phillpotts Eden Phillpotts (4 November 1862 – 29 December 1960) was an English author, poet and dramatist. He was born in Mount Abu, India, was educated in Plymouth, Devon, and worked as an insurance officer for ten years before studying for the stage a ...

, loosely based on the popular folk song "

Widecombe Fair Widecombe Fair is an annual fair in England, held in the Dartmoor village of Widecombe-in-the-Moor on the second Tuesday of September. It is well known as the subject of the folk song of the same name, featuring Uncle Tom Cobley and his fri ...

Cast

as The Lover *

as The Daughter *

Wyndham Standing Charles Wyndham Standing''Silent Film Necrology'', 2nd Edition by Eugene Michael Vazzana, c. 2001 page 497 (23 August 1880 – 1 February 1963) was an English film actor. Early years Standing was born in London, England and died in Los An ...

as The Squire *

Violet Hopson Violet Hopson (16 December 1887 – 21 July 1973) was an actress and producer who achieved fame on the British stage and in British silent films. She was born Elma Kate Victoria Karkeek in Port Augusta, South Australia on 16 December 1887. Viol ...

as The Widow *

as Uncle Tom Cobleigh * George Cooper as The Farmer * Aubrey Fitzgerald as The Bailiff * Eva Llewellyn as The Wife *

as The Landlord

Bibliography

* Low, Rachael. ''History of the British Film, 1918-1929''. George Allen & Unwin, 1971. * Wood, Linda. ''British Films 1927-1939''. BFI, 1986.

References

External links

*
''Widecombe Fair'' on the BFI Player
(UK only) 1928 films 1920s English-language films British comedy-drama films British silent feature films Films shot at British International Pictures Studios Films directed by Norman Walker Films set in England Films set in Devon Films based on British novels British black-and-white films 1928 comedy-drama films 1920s British films Silent comedy-drama films {{silent-comedy-drama-film-stub