Passenger to London

Passenger to London
Directed by	Lawrence Huntington
Written by	David Evans
Produced by	Lawrence Huntington
Starring	John Warwick Jenny Laird Nigel Barrie
Cinematography	Stanley Grant
Edited by	Peter Tanner
Music by	Charles Cowlrick
Production company	Fox British Pictures
Distributed by	Twentieth Century Fox
Release date	June 1937 (1937-06)
Running time	57 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Passenger to London (also known as The Black Trunk) is a 1937 British espionage thriller film directed by Lawrence Huntington and starring John Warwick, Jenny Laird and Nigel Barrie. ^[1] It was written by David Evans.

Plot

On board a continental express, British secret service agent Carlton hides valuable documents in a trunk belonging to fellow passenger Barbara Lane. When Carlton is murdered in London, Government agent Frank Drayton sets out to retrieve the papers and rescue Barbara, who has been drawn into the intrigue.

Cast

• John Warwick as Frank Drayton
• Jenny Laird as Barbara Lane
• Paul Neville as Vautel
• Ivan Wilmot as Veinberg
• Aubrey Pollock as Sir James Garfield
• Victor Hagen as Carlton
• Nigel Barrie as Sir Donald Frame
• Sybil Brooke as Miss Park
• Dorothy Dewhurst as Manageress

Production

It was shot at Wembley Studios in London as a quota quickie by the British subsidiary of Twentieth Century Fox. ^[2]

Reception

Kine Weekly wrote: "Opening sequences on the Continental train are well done, but too slow for full dramatic effect; the cheap hotel is quite well suggested, but the stock characters, uninspired dialogue, obtrusive and background music rob it of any chance to be convincing. There are some good! directorial touches, especially in the continuity." ^[3]

The Daily Film Renter wrote: "Action packs fair quota of thrills, even though development is far-fetched and plot machinations appear somewhat confected, while effective settings include continental express. Useful supporting feature for definitely popular patronage." ^[4]

Picturegoer considered the storyline as "too obvious" and the film being "too slow to be fully effective". ^[5]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "poor", writing: "Good settings, but otherwise feeble thriller." ^[6]

References

1. "Passenger to London". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 4 November 2025.
2. Chibnall, Steve. (2007). Quota Quickies: The Birth of the British 'B' Film. British Film Institute. p. 296. ISBN   978-1844571550.
3. "Passenger to London". Kine Weekly . 245 (1576): 33. 1 July 1937. ProQuest   2338213002.
4. "Passenger to London". The Daily Film Renter. 245 (3198): 4. 30 June 1937. ProQuest   3127088964.
5. "Passenger to London" . Pictuegoer. Vol. 7, no. 342. 11 December 1937. p. 31 – via British Newspaper Archive.
6. Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 128. ISBN   0-7134-1874-5.

External links

• Passenger to London at IMDb