Dame Gracie Fields was an English actress, singer, comedian and star of cinema and music hall who was one of the top ten film stars in Britain during the 1930s and was considered the highest paid film star in the world in 1937. She was known affectionately as Our Gracie and the Lancashire Lass and for never losing her strong, native Lancashire accent. She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and an Officer of the Venerable Order of St John (OStJ) in 1938, and a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1979.
Debt of Honour is a 1936 British drama film directed by Norman Walker and starring Leslie Banks, Will Fyffe, Geraldine Fitzgerald and Garry Marsh. Based on a story by Sapper, and scripted by Tom Geraghty and Cyril Campion, the film is also known as The Man Who Could Not Forget.
Montague (Monty) Banks was a 20th century Italian-born American comedian, film actor, director and producer who achieved success in the United States and Britain.
Norma Varden Shackleton, known professionally as Norma Varden, was an English-American actress with a long film career.
Queen of Hearts is a 1936 British musical comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring Gracie Fields, John Loder and Enid Stamp-Taylor.
"Wish Me Luck as You Wave Me Goodbye" is a song by Phil Park and Harry Parr-Davies, made popular during the Second World War by Gracie Fields. It appeared in Fields' 1939 film Shipyard Sally. Its use in the film is patriotic, Stephen C. Shafer argues, although the song in this context did not reference the war, as the film was released prior to its outbreak.
Dirty Work is a 1934 British comedy crime film directed by Tom Walls and starring Ralph Lynn, Gordon Harker, Robertson Hare and Basil Sydney. It was based on Dirty Work, one of the Aldwych Farces, by Ben Travers, which had some of the same cast members. The film was made at the Lime Grove Studios with sets designed by the art director Alfred Junge.
East Meets West is a 1936 British drama film directed by Herbert Mason and starring George Arliss, Lucie Mannheim, Godfrey Tearle and John Laurie. It was made at the Lime Grove Studios in London. The film's art direction was by Oscar Friedrich Werndorff.
It's a Cop is a 1934 British police-themed comedy film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Sydney Howard, Chili Bouchier and Garry Marsh. It was made at British and Dominion Elstree Studios.
Everything Happens to Me is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Max Miller, Chili Bouchier and H. F. Maltby. It was made at Teddington Studios by the British subsidiary of Warner Brothers The film's sets were designed by the art directors Peter Proud and Michael Relph.
Keep Smiling is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring Gracie Fields, Roger Livesey and Mary Maguire. The film follows a group of performers who club together to buy a bus and travel around the country doing shows after they are cheated out of money by an ex-manager.
Falling in Love is a 1935 British comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring Charles Farrell, Mary Lawson, Diana Napier and Gregory Ratoff. The film was shot at Walton Studios. It was released in the United States the following year under the alternative title Trouble Ahead.
We're Going to Be Rich is a 1938 British historical musical comedy film directed by Monty Banks and starring Gracie Fields, Victor McLaglen and Brian Donlevy.
You're the Doctor is a 1938 British comedy film directed by Roy Lockwood and starring Barry K. Barnes, Googie Withers and Norma Varden. The screenplay concerns a young woman who pretends to be ill to avoid going on a cruise with her parents, which leads to a series of confusions.
Holiday's End is a 1937 British mystery film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Sally Stewart, Rosalyn Boulter and Wally Patch. The film follows the arrival at boarding school of a boy king.
Love, Life and Laughter is a 1934 British comedy drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Gracie Fields, John Loder and Ivor Barnard.
Chick is a 1936 British comedy crime film directed by Michael Hankinson and starring Sydney Howard, Betty Ann Davies and Fred Conyngham. It is based on the 1923 novel of the same title by Edgar Wallace, which had previously been made into a 1928 silent film. The film was made at Elstree Studios. The hall porter at an Oxbridge College inherits an Earldom and enjoys a series of adventures.
This is a summary of 1939 in music in the United Kingdom.
Saturday Night Revue is a 1937 British musical film directed by Norman Lee and starring Billy Milton, Sally Gray and John Watt.
Strange Adventures of Mr. Smith is a 1937 British comedy film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Gus McNaughton, Norma Varden and Eve Gray. It was a quota quickie made at the Nettlefold Studios in Walton for release by RKO Pictures.
