Archives: Production

The Blue Lamp is a 1950 British police drama, directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jack Warner as veteran PC Dixon, Jimmy Hanley as newcomer PC Mitchell, and Dirk Bogarde as hardened criminal Tom Riley. The title refers to the blue lamps that traditionally hung outside British police stations (and often still do). The film became the inspiration for the 1955–1976 TV series Dixon of Dock Green, where Jack Warner continued to play PC Dixon until he was 80 years old (even though Dixon’s murder is the central plot of the original film).

Dance Hall is a 1950 British film directed by Charles Crichton. The film was an unusual departure for Ealing Studios at the time, as it tells the story about four women and their romantic encounters from a female perspective.

Bitter Springs is an Australian–British film directed by Ralph Smart and released in 1950. An Australian pioneer family leases a piece of land from the government in the Australian outback in 1900 and hires two inexperienced British men as drovers. Problems with local Aboriginal people arise over the possession of a waterhole. Much of the film was shot on location in the Flinders Ranges in South Australia.

Cage of Gold is a 1950 British drama film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Jean Simmons, David Farrar and James Donald.

The Magnet is a 1950 Ealing Studios comedy film featuring Stephen Murray, Kay Walsh and, in his first starring role, James Fox (then billed as William Fox). The story involves a young Wallasey boy, Johnny Brent (Fox), who obtains the eponymous magnet by deception, leading to much confusion. When he is acclaimed as a hero, he is shamed by his own sense of guilt.

Pool of London is a 1951 British noir crime film directed by veteran director Basil Dearden.

The Lavender Hill Mob is a 1951 comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T.E.B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass. The title refers to Lavender Hill, a street in Battersea, a district of South London, in the postcode district SW11, near to Clapham Junction railway station.

The Man In The White Suit is a 1951 science-fiction satirical comedy film made by Ealing Studios. It starred Alec Guinness, Joan Greenwood and Cecil Parker and was directed by Alexander Mackendrick. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing (Screenplay) for Roger MacDougall, John Dighton and Alexander Mackendrick (who was a cousin of Roger MacDougall).

Where No Vultures Fly is a 1951 British film. It was released under the title Ivory Hunter in the United States. It was directed by Harry Watt and starred Anthony Steel and Dinah Sheridan. The film was inspired by the work of the conservationist Mervyn Cowie. The film’s opening credits state that “the characters in this film are imaginary, but the story is based on the recent struggle of Mervyn Cowie to form the National Parks of Kenya.” The title Where No Vultures Fly denotes areas where there are no dead animals.

His Excellency is a 1952 British comedy film directed by Robert Hamer and starring Eric Portman, Cecil Parker, Helen Cherry. It follows a blunt Yorkshireman and former trade union leader, who is sent to take over as Governor of a British-ruled island in the Mediterranean.