''This Week of Grace'' is a 1933 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 o ...

directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Gracie Fields, Henry Kendall and John Stuart. The screenplay concerns a poor, unemployed woman who is made housekeeper at the estate of a wealthy duchess. It was promoted with the tagline " Cinderella in modern dress". It includes songs written by

Harry Parr-Davies Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...

, including "My Lucky Day" and "Happy Ending".

Plot

Grace Milroy loses her job working at a factory. However, through a strange set of circumstances, she is taken on as housekeeper at the nearby Swinford Castle the home of the eccentric Duchess of Swinford. She is initially coldly received by the other staff but she soon wins them over with her personality and hard work. While working there she falls in love with the Duchess' nephew, Viscount Swinford and eventually marries him. Later when she wrongly believes him to have married her under the mistaken impression she is rich she leaves him and goes to take a job on the stage working in the

chorus line A chorus line is a large group of dancers who together perform synchronized routines, usually in musical theatre. Sometimes, singing is also performed. Chorus line dancers in Broadway musicals and revues have been referred to by slang terms su ...

. Eventually the misunderstanding is cleared up and the couple reconcile.

Cast

* Gracie Fields as Grace Milroy * Henry Kendall as Lord Clive Swinford * John Stuart as Henry Baring * Frank Pettingell as Mr Milroy *

Minnie Rayner Minnie Rayner (2 May 1869 – 13 December 1941) was a British stage and film actress. In 1889, while in South Africa, she acted in the comic opera '' Falka'' as Edwige, the fiery Gipsey girl and sister of the brigand chief. The play was stage ...

as Mrs Milroy *

Douglas Wakefield Douglas Wakefield (28 August 189914 April 1951) was a British music hall performer and film actor. He is often credited as Duggie Wakefield. He appeared in two films with sister-in-law Gracie Fields, playing her brother in the 1933 comedy ''This W ...

as Joe Milroy * Vivian Foster as Vicar * Marjorie Brooks as Pearl Forrester *

Helen Haye Helen Haye (born Helen Hay, 28 August 1874 – 1 September 1957) was a British stage and film actress.
New York Times. 3 Septem ...

as Lady Warmington *

Nina Boucicault Nina Boucicault (27 February 1867 – 2 August 1950) was an English actress born to playwright Dion Boucicault and his wife, actress Agnes Kelly Robertson. She had three brothers, Dion William (1855–1876), Dion Boucicault Jr. and Aubrey Bo ...

as Duchess of Swinford *

Sherman Fisher Girls The Sherman Fisher Girls were a British dance troupe active in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Active in variety shows on the Music Hall circuit, they also featured at the Royal Variety Show. In 1938 and 1939 they were part of the hit revue ''These Fool ...

as Dancers

Production

The film was made by Twickenham Studios following a dispute between Radio Pictures, who owned the rights to Fields, and

Associated Talking Pictures Associated may refer to: *Associated, former name of Avon, Contra Costa County, California * Associated Hebrew Schools of Toronto, a school in Canada *Associated Newspapers, former name of DMG Media, a British publishing company See also *Associati ...

(ATP) who had previously made her films. It was part of an attempt by Twickenham to move away from making Quota quickies towards higher budgeted quality productions a strategy that continued until the bankruptcy of its owner

Julius Hagen Julius Hagen (1884–1940) was a German-born British film producer who produced more than a hundred films in Britain. Hagen originally worked as a salesman for Ruffels Pictures. He then worked his way up to become a production manager in the B ...

. As the sound stage at Twickenham was already booked, the film was shot at

Ealing Studios Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever ...

Reception

The film is one of the least well-known of Fields' work. It has been noted for its promotion of a national consensus between classes - the first time this had been featured in a Fields film. It was theme which was to become a cornerstone of her work during her years of mainstream popularity. It was well-received on its release with '' Kine Weekly'' observing that the film consolidated Field's as "England's premier entertainer".

Preservation status

Thought to have been

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography * Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland *Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

, it was loaned to the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

as a result of its 2010 search for missing films, and a copy was made for the National Archive.

References

Bibliography

* Richards, Jeffrey. ''The Age of the Dream Palace''. Routledge & Kegan, 1984. * Richards, Jeffrey (ed.). ''The Unknown 1930s: An Alternative History of the British Cinema, 1929- 1939''. I.B. Tauris & Co, 1998. * Shafer, Stephen C. ''British popular films, 1929-1939: The Cinema of Reassurance''. Routledge, 1997.

External links

* {{Maurice Elvey 1933 films 1933 comedy films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Maurice Elvey 1930s rediscovered films British comedy films Films set in London Ealing Studios films British black-and-white films Rediscovered British films Films scored by Percival Mackey 1930s British films