drummie

As a fan of the entire Carry On .... series, I was always disposed to like this movie. True, it had few regulars, but the script allowed the cast to shine. Kenneth Williams gives his usual over-the-top performance as the anything-but-fearless Captain Fearless, Juliet Mills gives the most amusingly unconvincing impersonation of a man since Some Like It Hot, and Bernard Cribbins is great as the good-hearted, but woefully naive Albert Poopdecker. Charlie Hawtrey plays his usual character as well as ever, and all in all the plot once more becomes just the backdrop for all the gags, double entendre, and slapstick we all expect and love from the movies we know so well.

I first saw this movie back when it was first released, and for a movie without many top names, I thought it was surprisingly good. Probably the lack of any over-riding egos helped the movie along.

I then caught it again on cable a short while ago - only the second time I'd seen the movie. Suddenly I was back in the dark cinema in London in 1984. What a great movie. Virginia Madsen is a typical 'english rose' type, Lenny Von Dohlen is just about geeky enough to be convincing but not stupid, and I wanted a computer like Edgar to help me get the girls!

It's not on TV often, but if you find it, watch it!

This show centred around Jacko, a self-professed ladies man, who as a builder and decorator worked in many a housewife's kitchen. However, the real strength of the show was in the supporting cast, especially Howard Lew Lewis as Elmo Putney, owner and manager of the worst pub in London. He would scare away the customers with his full-on attempts at friendliness and salesmanship, and his finest hour was when he refurbished the pub into a wine bar, resplendent in flamingo pink and lace curtains everywhere. pressed to come up with a stylish, continental-sounding name for the new bistro, he chose "Elmo Putney's Wine Bar". He made the show what it was, a great half-hour each week!