Released September, 1950 (U.K.); 61 minutes; B & W; 5644 feet; a Hammer Film Production; an Exclusive Release (U.K.); filmed at Oakley Court; Director: Godfrey Grayson; Producer: Anthony Hinds; Screenplay: A.R. Rawlinson and E.J. Mason, based on a story by Roger and Donald Good; U.K. Certificate: U.
Edward Rigby (the Earl), Henry Mollison (Bembridge), Mercy Haystead (Lapis), Michael Ward (Gerald), Eleanor Hallam (Lady Mary), Peter Burton (Bill Fenton), Anne Valery (Elaine), Tonie MacMillan (Mrs. Thimble), Mallie Palmer (Maudie), Howard Charlton (Perks), Alfred Harris (Bishop), George Bishop (the General), Norman Pitt (Policeman).
After retiring as Governor of a tropical island, the Earl (Edward Rigby) with his butler Bembridge (Henry Mollison) returns to his ancestral home in England. While unpacking, he discovers a stowaway—Lapis (Mercy Haystead), the Island king’s daughter who loves Bembridge. The butler is embarrassed, and Gerald (Michael Ward), the Earl’s grandson in the Foreign Office, is appalled. The government fears an incident and insists that Lapis be kept hidden, but gossip spreads through the village. However, the Earl and his broadminded granddaughter Elaine (Anne Valery) fail to see a problem. Reporter Peter Burton (Bill Fenton) is sent to investigate but falls for Elaine instead. The Earl solves the problem by having Bembridge appointed Governor and returns to the island with him and Lapis, serving as their butler.
Lacking a name actor in the lead, What the Butler Saw soon receded into obscurity.
Edward Rigby entertains his guests in What the Butler Saw (1950).
What the Butler Saw was another in a string of undistinguished but competently made Hammer films that now appears to be “lost,” possibly due to its lack of a star actor. Production began on January 9, 1950, with a four-week schedule. But, unlike in Hollywood, producers could not depend on the weather. A small example of this problem was addressed in The Daily Cinema (February 9): “Waiting for the sunshine in an English January sounds like the height of optimism, but it was justifiable for Godfrey Grayson directing the final shot of What the Butler Saw.” In order to match the previous shot filmed a week earlier, Grayson had to have sunshine and waited two days for it. Despite this delay, filming ended on schedule on February 3. The picture was trade shown at the Rialto on June 22 and went into general release in September to positive reviews. Today’s Cinema (June 23): “Unpretentious, yet lively screen farce, put over with disarming gusto by a competent cast”; and The Kinematograph Weekly (June 25): “Hardy light British booking. The exhuberant fooling has a touch of sex….”
What the Butler Saw was followed by another comedy, The Lady Craved Excitement. Neither film must have performed well, as Hammer’s next comedy came twenty-four films later. The company dabbled in comedy periodically but, with few exceptions, never got it quite right.
Released September, 1950 (U.K.); 60 minutes; B & W; 6342 feet; a Hammer Film Production; an Exclusive Release (U.K.); filmed at Oakley Court; Director: Francis Searle; Producer: Anthony Hinds; Screenplay: John Gilling, Edward J. Mason, Francis Searle, from the BBC radio serial by Mason; Director of Photography: Walter Harvey; Editor: John Ferris; Music: Frank Spencer; Songs: James Dyrenforth, George Melachrino; Dances: Leslie Roberts; U.K. Certificate: A.
Stoic Andrew Keir in a slapstick comedy?
Hy Hazell (Pat), Michael Medwin (Johnny), Sidney James (Carlo), Andrew Keir (Peterson), Thelma Grigg (Julia), Danny Green (Boris), John Longden (Inspector James), Ian Wilson (Mugsy), Barbara Hamilton, Jasmine Dee (Chorus Girls), Gordon Mulholland (Lunatic).
Pat (Hy Hazell) and Johnny (Michael Medwin) perform an act at Carlo’s Club, and her penchant for excitement drives Carlo (Sidney James) wild. While reading a newspaper, Pat learns that a mad killer, wearing a false beard, is on the loose. Naturally, she attempts to pull off the beard of Peterson (Andrew Keir), a valued club patron. Oddly, he finds Pat enchanting and asks her to pose for a painting—as Anne Boleyn, about to be beheaded!
Inspector James (John Longden), meanwhile, is investigating a series of art thefts, with Boris (Danny Green) and Mugsy (Ian Wilson), his main suspects. They kidnap Pat, following Julia’s (Thelma Grigg) plan to steal an art treasure Pat discovered at Peterson’s. She plans to trade a replica of the Crown Jewels for the deranged artist’s priceless oil painting. Pat escapes and is “rescued” by Peterson who wants to finish his painting, but Inspector James and Johnny arrive just in time.
Following the completion of What the Butler Saw, Hammer rushed its second comedy in a row into production on February 28, 1950, with a location shoot. Filming moved to Oakley Court on March 6, and concluded on the 31st. The Lady Craved Excitement was the last of a group of five pictures produced at Oakley Court. The Daily Cinema (April 13, 1950) noted that after the film’s conclusion, “all hands have moved to the new home at Gilston Park.” This would be a short stay—after four pictures, the company would move into the new Bray Studios.
After a July 27, 1950, trade show at the Rialto, The Lady Craved Excitement went into general release in September. Those few who reviewed the film found it slight, but amusing. The Kinematograph Weekly (August 3): “Amiable nonsense, innocuous fooling”; and the British Film Institute’s Monthly Bulletin (September): “A light crime comedy—with some impossible and quite amusing situations.”
Apparently, Hammer hoped to make a star of Hy Hazell, giving her a big promotional campaign in the trade papers. After she failed to register in The Lady Craved Excitement, her Hammer career ended, but she continued to act regularly through the fifties. Soon after the trade show, Hammer/Exclusive entered into an agreement with Robert Lippert. “Exclusive has signed a five-year contract,” The Kinematograph Weekly (August 3) reported, “with Lippert Productions to distribute here every film that the company makes.” Their association dated back to 1948 on a picture-to-picture basis, and would last until The Glass Cage’s American release in 1955.
Released October 22, 1951; 62 minutes; B & W; 5537 feet; a Hammer Film Production; an Exclusive Film Release (U.K.); filmed at Gilston Park, England; Director: Vernon Sewell; Producer: Anthony Hinds; Screenplay: Alan McKinnon, based on the BBC radio serial Return to Darkness by Lester Powell; Editor: James Needs; Director of Photography: Walter Harvey; U.K. Certificate: A.
Christine Norden (Christine), Robert Ayers (Mark Sherwin), Anthony Forwood (Paul), John Longden (Kemp), Jennifer Jayne (Sheila), John Harvey (Dr. Wallace), Reginald Dyson (Police Sergeant), Madoline Thomas (Mrs. Gladstone), Joan Carol (Manageress), Jill Hulbert (Maid), Bill Hodge (Receptionist).
While driving on an isolated road, Mark Sherwin (Robert Ayres) sees a body and stops to investigate. The “corpse” springs into life, knocks Mark unconscious, and steals his wallet. While escaping in Mark’s car, the thief loses control and dies in a crash. Mark staggers to a nearby house and is taken in by Mr. Kemp (John Longden) and his daughter Sheila (Jennifer Jayne) who nurses him back to health. Having lost his memory as well as his wallet, Mark has no clue to his identity.
The chance discovery of a ticket stub leads Mark to recover his memory. But, upon returning home, he is shocked to find that his wife Christine (Christine Norden) has identified the thief’s body as being his, and plans to marry her lover Paul (Anthony Forwood) after inheriting Mark’s estate. After allowing the funeral to take place, the conspirators must now murder Mark. During an attempt on his life, Mark kills Paul in self-defense. When Chrsitine realizes the plot has failed, she commits suicide.
Christine Norden as The Black Widow.
Based on the radio drama Return to Darkness, The Black Widow was Hammer’s first production at Gilston Park. Production began on April 17, 1950, with Vernon Sewell directing. Former singer Christine Norden’s acting career began in Mine Own Executioner (1947). She was given a big buildup by Hammer in the trade papers, including full page portrait shots of her in “widow weeds.” Unfortunately, her career ended at age 28 after only two more films. The Black Widow was trade shown on June 20 and failed to impress the Monthly Film Bulletin (July, 1951): “The characters never seem real and act as if they wished it were over.” Forty years later, Halliwell’s Film Guide thought the movie was “a whole lot less interesting than it sounds, acting and direction being alike laborious.”
The Black Widow was a minor entry, but it was Hammer’s first to feature a woman as the main villain. This was a theme that would appear with increasing regularity in the company’s pictures, peaking in the early seventies with The Vampire Lovers, Countess Dracula, and Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde.
The Rossiter Case
Released January 21, 1951 (U.K.); 75 minutes; B & W; 6828 feet; a Hammer Film Production; an Exclusive Films Release (U.K.); filmed at Gilston Park, England; Director, Screenplay: Francis Searle; Producer: Anthony Hinds; Screenplay: John Hunter, based on the play The Rossiters by Kenneth Hyde; Director of Photography: Jimmy Harvey; Editor: John Ferris; Music: Frank Spencer. U.K. Certificate: A.
Helen Shingler (Liz Rossiter), Clement McCallin (Peter), Sheila Burrell (Honor), Frederick Leister (Sir James Ferguson), Ann Codrington (Marty), Henry Edwards (Dr. Bendix), Dorothy Batley (Nurse West), Gabrielle Blunt (Alice), Eleanore Bryan (Agnes), Ewen Solon (Inspector), Robert Percival (Sergeant), Dennis Castle (Constable), Frederic Steger (Hobson), Stanley Baker (Joe), Anthony Allen (Arthur).
Due to an automobile accident, Liz Rossiter (Helen Shingler) is confined to a wheelchair. Her marriage to Peter (Clement McCallin) is strained, and the weak-willed man is easy prey for his calculating sister-in-law Honor (Sheila Burrell). Dr. Bendix (Henry Edwards) suggests that Liz see a specialist, but her paralysis is incurable. As Peter becomes more involved with Honor, she hints that she is pregnant to force him to divorce Liz. When Liz learns of her sister’s plan, she confronts Honor. They argue; and when Honor produces Peter’s gun, Liz miraculously overcomes her disability and wrestles the weapon away. It goes off, and Honor is killed.
Trade advertisement.
When the police find Honor’s body and Peter’s gun, he is arrested. Since he was drunk at the time of the shooting, Peter is unable to produce an alibi. Liz decides to confess and, while defending her husband, finds the power to walk. Peter realizes the folly of his actions, and he and Liz are re-united.
This little seen and long forgotten picture was based on Kenneth Hyde’s stage play The Rossiters, which was the film’s original title. It began production on May 22, 1950, and finished on June 9. A trade show was held on January 21 on the Gaumont-British circuit to limited and mixed reviews. The Kinematograph Weekly (January 18): “The picture makes the most of the physical disabilities and mental anguish of the luckless wife and finishes on a theatrically effective note”; and The Monthly Film Bulletin (February): “This melodrama, adapted from a stage play, has been almost literally transferred to the screen. The result is a film artificial in presentation and weighed down by dialogue.”
Lacking major stars or a famous source, The Rossiter Case is not listed in any film guides and seems to have vanished.
Released February, 1951 (U.K.); 63 minutes; B & W; 5717 feet; a Hammer Film Production; released by Exclusive; filmed at Gilston Park; Director: Godfrey Grayson; Producer: Anthony Hinds; Screenplay: Reginald Long, from Lionel Brown’s play; Director of Photography: James Harvey; Editor: James Needs; Music: Frank Spencer; Song “Midsummer Day” by Frank Spencer and Reginald Long; U.K. Certificate: A.
Avis Scott (June), Patrick Barr (Brian), Robert Ayres (Max), Harry Fine (Robert), Ellen Pollock (Roberta), Richard Warner (Cyril), Eunice Gayson (Peggy), Peter Neil (Dr. Pritchard).
The marriage of June de Winter (Avis Scott) and the hard working Brian Harding (Patrick Barr) comes just in time to aid the de Winters. But, despite Brian’s attempts to restore their Halston estate, his presence is resented by June’s siblings Robert (Harry Fine) and Roberta (Ellen Pollock). When Robert forces Brian to ride an unmanageable horse, he is thrown and crippled. Cousin Max’s (Robert Ayres) arrival from Argentina takes up the slack, and the restoration continues. He and June are attracted and, when Brian finds out, tries to make things easier by verbally mistreating her. Roberta learns that Max has an adult daughter Peggy (Eunice Gayson) and invites her to Halston, hoping she will cause dissention and give the de Winters more control. But, due to Brian’s counseling, Peggy accepts Max and June’s affair. Brian is dying, and with the little time remaining, takes Peggy to Italy to study singing. He gives Max a gift of his wedding ring, inscribed “To Have and To Hold.”
To Have and to Hold continued Hammer’s policy of basing their films on existing works, and was the thirteenth straight picture to do so. The movie began production on June 26, 1950, at Gilston Park while The Dark Light was on location. Hammer’s resources were stretched to the limit by the simultaneous filming, but felt it necessary to get as many films on the screen as possible. From 1950 to 1952, the company produced 22 films, and the only way to accomplish that was to double up. With this film, Hammer entered the “soap opera” genre for the first and last time, and it was a departure from the company’s typical murder mystery. It’s probable that the rights to Lionel Brown’s play were easily (and inexpensively) obtainable. Whatever the reason for the departure, Hammer went back to its standard thriller immediately.
To Have and to Hold was trade shown on February 14, 1951, at the Rialto and was released later that month to indifferent reviews—The Kinematograph Weekly (no date): “The acting is a trifle uneven and much of the dialogue and sentiment is outmoded, but it hands out a pretty safe line in pulp fiction”; and the British Film Institute’s Monthly Bulletin (February): “The situation is strained for all concerned.” Continuing a tradition followed by many quota quickies, To Have and to Hold, with its lack of “name” actors, seems to have vanished.
Released April 23, 1951 (U.K.); 66 minutes; B & W; 6025 feet; a Hammer Film Production; an Exclusive Films Release (U.K.); filmed on location in Portsmouth, England; Director and Screenplay: Vernon Sewell; Executive Producer: Anthony Hinds; Producer: Michael Carreras; U.K. Certificate: A.
Albert Lieven (Mark), David Greene (Johnny), Norman MacOwen (Rigby), Martin Benson (Luigi), Jack Stewart (Matt), Catherine Blake (Linda), Joan Carol (Joan), John Harvey (Roger), John Longden (Stephen).
The crew of the yacht Gelert notices that the lamp on Thimble Rock Island lighthouse is out. They search the lighthouse and find it abandoned, with a missing page from the skipper’s logbook and blood dripping from the ceiling. A flashback reveals what happened the previous day.
Rigby (Norman MacOwen), the lighthouse skipper, and his assistants Matt (Jack Stewart) and Johnny (David Greene) are fogged in. When the bank lifts, they spot a motorboat drifting by. They rescue Mark (Albert Lieven), his secretary Linda (Catherine Blake) and Mark’s friend Luigi (Martin Benson). Rigby learns that they are bank robbers fleeing the country when their boat failed. The criminals win over Matt and Johnny in their plan to steal the lighthouse ship, but Rigby destroys its engine. They kill him and, with Matt and Johnny, try to row away in the damaged boat. During the escape, a fight breaks out, and Matt and Mark fall overboard. Johnny has a change of heart and takes the boat to shore to give himself and the remaining gang up to the authorities.
The Dark Light was Hammer’s last feature shot at Gilston Park before moving to Down Place. Written and directed by Vernon Sewell, it was primarily filmed off the coast of Portsmouth on Sewell’s personal yacht and at Nab Lighthouse. Filming began on July 10, 1950, and ended on August 19, as 23-year-old Michael Carreras brought his first picture as producer in on schedule. Carreras recalled in Little Shoppe of Horrors 5, that after being in the Story Department, “I suppose I became a bit itchy, and they gave me my first film to do. It was to be made on a thing called Nab Lighthouse. Well, the ‘Nab Tower’ looked like something which the Gas Board might have thrown into the sea—no shape, no style, no character—and that was my first film!” The cast of the unknowns was headed by “hero” David Greene, who was married to “villainess” Catherine Blake and later became a director (The Shuttered Room, 1967).
Trade advertisement.
The Dark Light was released on April 23, 1951, to negative reviews. The Kinematograph Weekly (March 29): “A dreary, incoherent crime melodrama—completely lacks purpose and point”; and The Monthly Film Bulletin (May): “Incoherent plot development, clumsy handling, and generally indifferent performance.” Despite these blistering reviews, Hammer was one of the few British film companies holding its own during an uncertain period. Hammer planned to make seven features, as well as thirteen shorts to be sold to American television as a series called Yoga and You. The sale never materialized, but three shorts were released theatrically. James Carreras also tried to negotiate a production agreement with producer Sol Lesser to co-produce nine pictures with a guaranteed American release. This too failed to materialize, and only two movies were actually made. Hammer’s dream of entering the American market had to be postponed until Robert L. Lippert came into the picture.