Marriage of Convenience (1960 film)

Marriage of Convenience
Directed by	Clive Donner
Written by	Robert Banks Stewart
Based on	The Three Oak Mystery by Edgar Wallace
Produced by	Jack Greenwood Jim O'Connolly
Starring	John Cairney Harry H. Corbett John Van Eyssen
Cinematography	Brian Rhodes
Edited by	Bernard Gribble
Music by	Francis Chagrin
Production company	Merton Park Studios
Distributed by	Anglo-Amalgamated
Release date	November 1960 (1960-11)
Running time	58 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Marriage of Convenience is a 1960 British crime film directed by Clive Donner and starring Harry H. Corbett, John Cairney and John Van Eyssen. ^[1] The screenplay was by Robert Banks Stewart, based on the 1924 Edgar Wallace novel The Three Oak Mystery . ^[2] It is part of the series of Edgar Wallace Mysteries films made at Merton Park Studios from 1960 to 1965.

Plot

A convict escapes from jail, only to discover that his girlfriend has married the police officer who arrested him.

Cast

• Harry H. Corbett as Inspector Bruce
• John Cairney as Larry
• John Van Eyssen as John Mandle
• Jennifer Daniel as Barbara Blair
• Moira Redmond as Tina
• Russell Waters as Sam Spencer
• Trevor Reid as Superintendent Carver
• Howard Goorney as onion seller
• Alexander Archdale as governor
• Geoffrey Denton as uniformed inspector
• Patrick Ludlow as registrar
• Barry MacLean as 1st warder
• Basil Beale as 2nd warder
• Alex Scott as Vic Ellis
• Patricia Burke as woman in the apartment
• Pauline Shepherd as Evie Martin
• Leila Williams as secretary
• Duncan Burns as garage apprentice
• Trevor Maskell as Sergeant Collins

Release

Marriage of Convenience was the first of the Edgar Wallace series to be allocated to the Rank circuit for general release. It went out as support for Man in the Moon (1960) from January 15, 1961.^{[ citation needed ]}

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Altogether a disappointing addition to Merton Park's new Edgar Wallace series, in that Clive Donner's surprisingly stiff, journeyman style of direction provides nothing to compensate for the generally amateurish level of performance and writing." ^[3]

Robert Murphy wrote: "Clive Donner's Marriage of Convenience and The Sinister Man are very stylish, and clearly marked him out for higher things." ^[4]

References

1. "Marriage of Convenience". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
2. Goble, Alan (1999). The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film. Walter de Gruyter. p. 488.
3. "Marriage of Convenience". The Monthly Film Bulletin . 28 (324): 10. 1 January 1961. ProQuest   1305821946.
4. Murphy, Robert (1992). Sixties British CInema. London: British Film Institute. p. 214. ISBN   0851703240.

External links

• Marriage of Convenience at IMDb