Rent How to be Eccentric: The Essential Richard Massingham (1951)
3.5 of 5 from 2 ratings
2h 50min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
During the 1940's, Richard Massingham's face was recognisable to anyone who went to the cinema in Britain. His performances as the well-meaning but bumbling everyman in a series of imaginative shorts provided instruction to the British public on everything from how to cross roads to the correct way to sneeze into a handkerchief and the need to bathe in just five inches of water during the time of wartime rationing. Marked by a wonderfully inventive combination of comedy, instruction, surrealism and whimsy, these films not only starred Massingham, but were also often produced and directed by him. This essential collection, selected from the BFI archives, celebrates this extraordinary figure and reveals him to be one of British cinema's most fascinating and enduring eccentrics.
Dr. Massingham Says...
- Tell Me If it Hurts (1934)
- Coughs and Sneezes (1945)
- Jet-Propelled Germs (1948)
- Handkerchief Drill (1949)
- Another Case of Poisoning (1949)
- The Cure (1950)
Surviving the War
- The Five Inch Bather (1942)
- Post Early for Christmas (1943)
- In Which We Live: Being the Life Story of a Suit Told by Itself (1943)
- Elopement in France (1944)
An Englishman's Home...
- Down at the Local (1945)
- An Englishman's Home...(1946)
- Moving House (1950)
Post-War Blues: What a Life!
- What a Life (1948)
- Watch Your Meters (1947)
- Warning to Travellers (1949)
- Help Yourself (1950)
Post-War Blues: The Daily Grind
- Pool of Contentment (1946)
- Pedal Cyclists (1947)
- Pedestrian Crossing (1948)
- 30 Miles an Hour (1949)
- Introducing the New Worker (1951)- Actors:
- Richard Massingham, Nicolas Bentley, Valentine Dyall, Judith Furse, Richard Goolden, Judy Kelly, René Ray, Russell Waters, Barbara Lott, Avis Scott, Dick Emery, Harry Fowler, John Stuart, James Crabbe, Patsy Ann Hedges, Maureen Hurley, Gus McNaughton, Neil North, Helena Pickard, Kynaston Reeves
- Directors:
- Richard Massingham, Michael Law, John Waterhouse, John Krish, Michael Orrom
- Producers:
- Richard Massingham
- Writers:
- Henry De Rochefort, John Krish, Michael Law, Richard Massingham, John Squire, Quentin Dobson
- Studio:
- BFI Video
- Genres:
- Children & Family, Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Special Interest
- Collections:
- Hitchcock in the 1940s, Top 10 British Actresses of the 1940s, Top Films
