A pantomime dame is a traditional role in British pantomime. It is part of the theatrical tradition of travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. Dame characters are often played either in an extremely camp style, or else by men acting butch in women's clothing. They usually wear heavy make up and big hair, have exaggerated physical features, and perform in an over-the-top style.
Norman Evans was an English stage and radio comedian, best remembered for his sketches and programmes entitled "Over the Garden Wall".
John E. Blakeley was a British film producer, director and screenwriter, the founder of Mancunian Films.
Mancunian Films was a British film production company first organised in 1933. From 1947 it was based in Rusholme, a suburb of Manchester, and produced a number of comedy films, mostly aimed at audiences in the North of England.
Cissie and Ada, in full Cissie Braithwaite and Ada Shufflebotham, are a comedy drag act featuring two fictional housewives from Northern England. The act was created and played by the comedian Les Dawson and the comic actor Roy Barraclough on television in the 1970s and 1980s.
The Sandwich Man is a 1966 British comedy film directed by Robert Hartford-Davis starring Michael Bentine, with support from a cast of British character actors including Dora Bryan, Harry H. Corbett, Bernard Cribbins, Diana Dors, Norman Wisdom, Terry-Thomas and Ian Hendry. It was written by Hartford-Davis and Bentine.
Jimmy James was an English music hall, film, radio and television comedian and comedy actor. James had limited use for jokes as such, preferring to say things in a humorous manner, sometimes in surreal situations and as such was seen by some as well ahead of his time. He was often hailed as a "comedians' comedian".
The Huggetts Abroad is a 1949 British comedy drama film directed by Ken Annakin and starring Jack Warner, Kathleen Harrison, Petula Clark and Susan Shaw. It was written by Gerard Bryant and Ted Willis from a story by Keith Campbell.
They Came to a City is a 1944 British black-and-white film directed by Basil Dearden and starring John Clements, Googie Withers, Raymond Huntley, Renee Gadd and A. E. Matthews. It was adapted from the 1943 play of the same title by J. B. Priestley, and is notable for including a cameo appearance by Priestley as himself.
It's a Great Day is a 1955 British comedy film directed by John Warrington and starring Ruth Dunning, Edward Evans and Sid James. It was written by Roland Pertwee and Michael Pertwee. It is a spin-off from the BBC TV soap The Grove Family.
Sally in Our Alley is a 1931 British romantic comedy drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Gracie Fields, Ian Hunter, and Florence Desmond. It is based on the 1923 West End play The Likes of Her by Charles McEvoy.
Saloon Bar is a 1940 British comedy thriller film directed by Walter Forde and starring Gordon Harker, Elizabeth Allan and Mervyn Johns. It was made by Ealing Studios and its style has led to comparisons with the later Ealing Comedies, unlike other wartime Ealing films which are different in tone. It is based on the 1939 play of the same name by Frank Harvey in which Harker had also starred. An amateur detective tries to clear an innocent man of a crime before the date of his execution.
Three Hats for Lisa a.k.a. One Day in London is a 1965 British musical comedy film directed by Sidney Hayers and starring Joe Brown, Sid James, Sophie Hardy, Una Stubbs and Dave Nelson. The screenplay was by Leslie Bricusse and Talbot Rothwell.
The Second Mate is a 1950 British crime film directed by John Baxter and starring Gordon Harker, Graham Moffatt and David Hannaford. It was made at Southall Studios.
Penny Paradise is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Carol Reed and starring Edmund Gwenn, Betty Driver and Jimmy O'Dea.
Those People Next Door is a 1953 British comedy film directed by John Harlow and starring Jack Warner, Charles Victor and Marjorie Rhodes. It was based on the play Wearing the Pants by Zelda Davees.
Murder at 3 a.m. is a 1953 British crime film second feature directed by Francis Searle and starring Dennis Price, Peggy Evans and Rex Garner. A Scotland Yard detective investigates a series of attacks on women.
Under New Management, also known as Honeymoon Hotel, is a 1946 British comedy film directed by John E. Blakeley and starring Nat Jackley, Norman Evans and Dan Young. The screenplay concerns a chimney sweep inherits a hotel and calls on a number of ex-army friends to staff it. The film was one of a number of films at the time dealing with the contemporary issue of demobilisation following the end of the Second World War.
School for Randle is a 1949 British comedy film directed by John E. Blakeley and starring Frank Randle, Dan Young and Alec Pleon. It was written by Randle, Harry Jackson and John E. Blakeley. It was made at the Manchester Studios, and was one of a string of cheaply made and profitable films starring Randle during the era. The title is a reference to the Richard Brinsley Sheridan play The School for Scandal.
Dickenson Road Studios was a film and television studio in Rusholme, Manchester, in north-west England. It was originally set up in 1947 in a former Wesleyan Methodist Chapel by the film production company Mancunian Films and was acquired by BBC Television in 1954. The studio was used for early editions of the music chart show Top of the Pops between 1964 and 1966.
