John Gilling was an English film director and screenwriter, born in London. He was known for his horror movies, especially those he made for Hammer Films, for whom he directed The Shadow of the Cat (1961), The Plague of the Zombies (1966), The Reptile (1966) and The Mummy's Shroud (1967), Cross of the Devil (1975), among others.
The Quiet Woman is a 1951 British crime film directed by John Gilling and based on a story by Ruth Adam, about a criminal's wife who attempts to build a new life after her husband goes to prison, only to be menaced by him when he escapes. It starred Derek Bond, Jane Hylton and Dora Bryan.
The Seventh Survivor is a 1942 British spy war film directed by Leslie S. Hiscott and starring Austin Trevor, Linden Travers and John Stuart. It was produced by British National Films and Shaftesbury Films. Shot in 1941, it was released in January the following year. The film was made at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith as a second feature. It was one of several British films of the time that take place predominantly on lighthouses including Tower of Terror and Sabotage at Sea.
It's Not Cricket is a 1949 British comedy film directed by Alfred Roome and starring Basil Radford, Naunton Wayne, Susan Shaw and Maurice Denham. It is the second of two starring films for Radford and Wayne who appeared as supporting players in ten other films. It was also one of the final films made by Gainsborough Pictures before the studio was merged into the Rank Organisation.
Things Happen at Night is a 1947 British supernatural ghost comedy film directed by Francis Searle and starring Gordon Harker, Alfred Drayton, Robertson Hare and Garry Marsh. The film is based upon a stage play, The Poltergeist, by Frank Harvey. It was shot at Twickenham Studios. Despite the film's comparatively large budget it ended up being released as a second feature.
The Chinese Bungalow, also known as Chinese Den, is a 1940 British drama film directed by George King and starring Kay Walsh, Jane Baxter and Paul Lukas. It was adapted from the 1925 play The Chinese Bungalow by Marion Osmond and James Corbett. King was a former producer of quota quickies who was increasingly working on films with better budgets during the early war years.
The Lost Hours is a 1952 British film noir directed by David MacDonald and starring Mark Stevens, Jean Kent and John Bentley. It was produced by Tempean Films which specialised in making second features at the time, and marked Kent's first descent into B films after her 1940s stardom. It was shot at Isleworth Studios and on location around London. The film's sets were designed by the art director Andrew Mazzei. It was released in the United States the following year by RKO Pictures as The Big Frame.
Night Train for Inverness is a black and white 1960 British drama film directed by Ernest Morris and starring Norman Wooland, Jane Hylton and Dennis Waterman. It is notable as the film debut of Dennis Waterman. The film was referenced in an episode of the Minder Podcast.
Impulse is a 1954 British second feature film noir directed by Cy Endfield and starring Arthur Kennedy, Constance Smith and Joy Shelton.
Tower of Terror is a 1941 British wartime thriller film directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring Wilfrid Lawson, Michael Rennie and Movita. It was made at Welwyn Studios with location shooting on Flat Holm off the Welsh coast.
Files from Scotland Yard is a 1951 British crime film directed by Anthony Squire and starring John Harvey, Moira Lister and Louise Hampton. It was made as a second feature on a very low-budget, and the production company was wound up soon afterwards.
The Dark Light is a 1951 British thriller film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Albert Lieven, David Greene, Norman Macowan. It was filmed at a rented country estate in Gilston and on location around Portsmouth. Sewell used his own boat.
Room to Let is a 1950 British historical thriller film directed by Godfrey Grayson and starring Jimmy Hanley, Valentine Dyall and Constance Smith. It was adapted from the BBC radio play by Margery Allingham, broadcast in 1947.
The Man from Yesterday is a 1949 British thriller film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring John Stuart, Henry Oscar and Marie Burke. It was made at Southall Studios.
Death of an Angel is a 1952 British crime drama film directed by Charles Saunders and starring Patrick Barr, Jane Baxter and Jean Lodge. It was filmed at Bray Studios as a second feature.
The Straw Man is a 1953 British crime film directed by Donald Taylor and starring Dermot Walsh, Clifford Evans and Lana Morris. Its storyline focuses on insurance fraud. It is based on the 1951 novel Straw Man by Doris Miles Disney.
The Happiness of Three Women is a 1954 British drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Brenda de Banzie, Donald Houston and Petula Clark. The film was released on the Odeon Circuit as a double bill with The Crowded Day. It was made at Walton Studios with sets designed by the art director John Stoll. It was adapted from Eynon Evans's Welsh-set play Wishing Well.
Two Letter Alibi is a 1962 British crime film directed by Robert Lynn and starring Peter Williams, Petra Davies and Ursula Howells.
Wrong Number is a 1959 British crime film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Peter Reynolds, Lisa Gastoni and Olive Sloane. It was produced as a second feature at Merton Park Studios in London. The film's sets were designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold.
The Monarch Film Corporation was a British film distribution company active during the 1940s and 1950s. It specialised in supplying second features to British cinemas. The company handled a mixture of British and American films, as well as the Australian film Strong Is the Seed. It involved itself in production at times, and produced several more ambitious features including Hindle Wakes (1952) and A Yank in Ermine (1956). It had an arrangement with ACT Films under John Croydon to handle films made at Walton Studios. The 1952 adventure film Men Against the Sun (1952) was, unusually for the second feature market, a costume adventure film despite its running time.
