A curious little picture with a running time of only 23 minutes, and a film that I did not know until Talking Pictures showed it a few days ago.

Alan Badel plays the part of an eccentric stranger who comes to town – it was filmed in Windsor – and somehow entrances the people with his bizarre antics and magic tricks – dressed in theatrical attire

It looks as though this was only Alan Badel’s second film – he was only 28 or so when it was made.

Wendy Toye directed the film.


Alan Badel is a peculiar, bearded man with bushy eyebrows and baggy patchwork clothes who shows up one sunny day in a small town. Merrily twirling his umbrella as he prances through the streets wowing the children with showers of confetti and magic tricks.

He manages to turn the heads of everyone he encounters and charms all of the townspeople in a short time.

However this strange man, is actually up to something much more sinister, as he eventually seeks out a wealthy and corrupt banker named Mr. Lathan (Cameron Hall).

It is a short story written by Sidney Carroll; that somehow manages to be both amusing and eerie.

The film certainly packs a lot into its 23-minute run-time – almost more than some feature length films. I

It has a whimsical music score from Muir Mathieson who seemed to feature on the credits of every film we saw at the time

Director Toye and Alan Badel would team up again for the even-better short ‘In the Picture’ (contained in the 1955 THREE CASES OF MURDER) a few years later.

Wendy Toye remade The Stranger for the TV series Tales of the Unexpected in a version which starred Derek Jacobi

We will all remember these two BELOW. The films were made in Hollywood but the casting of Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce was just perfect.

ABOVE In a publicity still

I always thought that this version of ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ really suffered because of it’s lack of English locations and location filming. It was Studio bound mainly although the sets were pretty good.

It still somehow lacked that English feel that is so vital in this story but the later ones which were set much later in the forties were much more acceptable to us I think – they were shorter but somehow captured the mood

Richard Greene played Sir Henry in ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ – and shortly after this he joined the British Forces and fought in the Second World War after which his career faltered for almost a decade until he became very famous on a world scale as Robin Hood.

I really like the story ‘The Speckled Band’ but have never seen this early version. In the scene above we have Lynn Harding, and Arnold Stewart with Holmes here played by Raymond Massey.

One comment from someone who has seen the film says ‘Very bad casting. Raymond Massey looked no more like Sherlock Holmes than James Cagney’

This film has Arthur Wontner as Holmes – again a comment from the same contributor ‘ A first class actor with a strong resemblance to the character. Easily the best Holmes up to that time‘.

It was made at Twickenham Studios and released in 1934

The film above from 1991 is ‘Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady’ and in this story Holmes and Watson are older. The film’s running time is 187 minutes so over 3 hours long. The film also featured singer Engelbert Humperdinck in a straight role.

I am not sure that it did any good at the Box Office – it was a European Production with much of the filming done on the continent.

We have skipped past Jeremy Brett who was superb as Holmes with Edward Hardwicke as Dr Watson. This would require at least a full article.

However we must not forget the BBC Radio series with Carleton Hobbs as Holmes and Norman Shelley in the role of Doctor Watson

Carleton Percy Hobbs (18 june 1898 – 31 july 1978) was a British actor most famous for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes on radio.

Hobbs is the only one who have performed Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson in radio shows :

• In 1943, he played Dr. Watson in The Boscombe Valley Mystery with Arthur Wontner as Sherlock Holmes.
• From 1952 to 1969, he played Sherlock Holmes in 75 episodes (56 stories and reruns) in the radio show Sherlock Holmes (BBC) with Norman Shelley as Dr. Watson.
• This is the longest show in the history of Sherlock Holmes radio plays. The stories recorded were created in two main batches. The first 18 stories was from 1952 to 1958, when the recordings were made for BBC Children’s Hour. The second batch spans from 1959 to 1969 and were produced for the adult listener.

I hadn’t realised that Patricia Medina was out in Hollywood as early as this but maybe now, thinking about it, I do remember

The film was produced by Walter Wanger who got off to a flying start by sacking Barbara Payton a week before the film went into production and replacing her with Patricia Medina.

‘Lady in the Iron Mask’ is directed by Ralph Murphy, and has a running time of 78 minutes.

It was released by 20th Century Fox, is written by Jack Pollexfen and Aubrey Wisberg, based on the novel by Alexandre Dumas Père

The film was shot in Supercinecolor (as Natural Color) by Ernest Laszlo and was made at Motion Picture Center Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles.

It is a pleasing swashbuckling story with Louis Hayward as D’Artagnan and the Musketeers rallying to the rescue of the Royal throne of France when Princess Anne (Patricia Medina – in a dual role ) is kidnapped and her long-lost sister Louise is put in her place. The plotters want a marriage with Philip of Spain, which would ensure their control of France. The musketeers rush to stop this plot and after many adventures they are successful. Princess Anne marries D’Artagnan and leaves her sister on the throne of France in her place.

ABOVE: A film still signed by the two stars.

I am searching currently for a DVD of the film but I would want the Colour Version which is in SuperCinecolor – a very good process – have a look at ‘Hurricane Island with Jon Hall to see how good it is.

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This collection of photographs below come from the late fifties – probably 1958 or 1959 and shows some of the Film Stars of the day indulging in their various hobbies

ABOVE Keith Michell had been an art teacher and had become quite proficient in the art of Oil Painting. Here he is painting his wife the actress Janette Sterke – let’s hope that she is pleased with the results – I am sure she will be

ABOVE – Now this is an unusual one and shows actor Aldo Ray who is an expert fisherman, shown ‘tickling’ the trout and then flipping it out of the water.

I have a feeling that Aldo Ray was here in England at the time this picture was taken, filming studio scenes for the ‘The Siege of Pinchgut’ much of which was done in Sydney Australia – An excellent film

ABOVE – Charlie Drake and Dickie Henderson on the golf course in Blackpool at some sort of charity event

ABOVE and BELOW – Donald Sinden is a real ‘do-it-yourself’ enthusiast. selecting the wood and below – making use of the book case that he has made

BELOW – Sylvia Sims is very interested in interior design, and here she is decorating the new family home at Barnes in London

As we know, Sylvia Sims died earlier this year and it was reported that her home was then in Chiswick close by.

Seems like a complete clash of two names that don’t appear to have any relationship at all – unless you are a film fan of the 1950’s

‘Treasure Island’ filmed at Denham Film Studios by Walt Disney in the summer of 1949 – film released 1950 – featured the Denham Lake as the place where the pirates with Long John Silver and Jim Hawkins landed on the island

Now in 2023 we have the HS2 longest Railway Bridge in the country straddling the very place where this happened

Whatever would Walt Disney and Robert Newton have had to say about this, let alone Richard Todd who carried on here in similar locations in ‘The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men’

BELOW – The action for ‘Treasure Island’ takes place there almost three quarters of a Century ago

ABOVE – Here we are arriving at Treasure Island – the palm tress were added to the summer foliage and it really looks effective and good.

I just love these shots both above and below – and a Rail Bridge above them – Well not then and not for a few decades

ABOVE – Bobby Driscoll runs from the Pirates – again at Denham close to where the RAIL Bridge would be positioned a long time later

The final home of Marilyn Monroe – and the only residence she ever owned – will remain standing for now after Los Angeles officials intervened to block the property’s demolition.

The news that the new owners of 12305 Fifth Helena Drive, where Marilyn died at age 36, filed for demolition permits has attracted outrage in Hollywood . The Spanish colonial-style house is Brentwood

Marilyn Monroe purchased the single-story, 2,900-sq-ft house in the early 1960s for $75,000 after the end of her third marriage to playwright Arthur Miller. It was the only residence the actress, who spent part of her childhood in an orphanage ever owned.

She had named the home Cursum Perficio, a Latin phrase meaning “My journey ends here”, which adorned tiles on the home’s front porch.

One comment I came across was particularly relevant I think :-

“For people all over the world, Marilyn Monroe was more than just a movie icon. Her story, from her challenging childhood growing up in orphanages and foster homes to becoming a global sensation, is a shining example of what it means to overcome adversity,”

“The overwhelming sentiment here is clear. This home must be preserved as a crucial piece of Hollywood’s and the city of Los Angeles’ history, culture and legacy.”

News of the demolition plans broke in September of this year – pleased to say that her home will now be saved.

BELOW – Marilyn Monroe here relaxing in her home. She certainly knew how to be photographed

Can anyone help with this – I seem to remember seeing a Television series on the Jalna books way back in the early / mid seventies screened I think on ITV in the early afternoon titled ‘Whiteoaks of Jalna’

There were apparently 16 Jalna books featuring the Whiteoaks family over a century and for whatever reason the books didn’t necessariy follow on in any sort of date order.

The Author of these hugely successful books was Mazo de la Roche and in many ways the stories seemed like a TV screen writer’s dream – several generations of colourful characters living under one roof, lots of action, intrigue and humour, in a story spanning decades.

Film or TV Companies should have been able to turn this into another Forsyte Saga – maybe still could

The 16-novel soap-opera series about a nineteenth-century Ontario family, the Whiteoaks, and their home, Jalna, has sold over 11 million copies.

Has anyone got a video or DVD of this please.

This film was on ITV3 a few Sundays ago , and we watched it again.

ABOVE – One of my own pictures – and I love it – so dramatic

The film seems to divide opinions but for me I was very happy with it – Toby Jones as Captain Mainwaring and Bill Naghy as Sergeant Wilson were just about perfect in their well known roles.

Tom Courtenay was quite good as Corporal Jones as was Michael Gambon playing Godfrey – and the lovely Catherine Zeta Jones added a new dimension

In many ways, it was a brave move even to take on these parts which were so much identified with their predecessors but nevertheless they did and the results in my view were extremely good.

What a rousing end it was as Mainwaring led his men on a march through Warmington-on-Sea with cheering crowds as Three Spitfires swooped down above them. I couldn’t stop cheering !!

Captain Mainwaring and Sergeant Wilson head the parade through Walmington On Sea

Walmington On Sea – Bridlington Old Town

Walmington On Sea – Bridlington Old Town

A couple of the original cast members appeared in this 2016 film – Frank Williams who played the vicar Reverend Timothy Farthing – and does so again here and Ian Lavender who as a very young man was Private Pike, here he plays Brigadier Pritchard

The film did well at the Box Office

Saturday afternoon and I scanned through the Film Channels to find what I think was called GreatMovies and settling on that I watched ‘Montana Territory’ from 1952 in Technicolor but with a running time of just 64 minutes.

However those minutes were packed with Western Action and I have to say it was a film I thoroughly enjoyed

Pretty impressive supporting cast with Jack Elam, Clayton Moore and Myron Healey – I didnt know much about Lon McCallister but he proved good in this leading role

Much of the location filing was done at the Iverson Ranch just outside Hollywood – used in many Westerns – and others including the Jungle Jim series. Famous Film Director William Witney used this a lot and said that he was not fully at ease there because it was inhabited by quite a few Rattlesnakes

ABOVE – Preston Foster plays the Sheriff – but is he all seems seems to be ?

ABOVE – Wanda Handrix is captured and dragged back into the Ranch House

Lon McCallister is injured be is OK in the arms of Wanda Hendrix

Back to Wanda Hendrix – she had married Audie Murphy in February of 1949 but in 1950 she filed for divorce although I think she always loved him. When he remarried in April 1951 she went off to New York for as she says ‘heartache’ reasons on hearing this news.

She had many escorts until she later married Robert Stack’s brother – that marriage also ended in divorce.

When Audie Murphy died a lot of years later in 1971 she attended his funeral and was weeping throughout.

A decade later, at the age of 52, she died

‘Its Turned out Nice Again’ was shown on Television very recently – a film I know so well and just love with George Formby – this time married – but living with his dragon of a mother.

George works at a ladies underwear factory – an old traditional company whose products seem woefully out of date with modern design. Hence the cue for George to sing ‘You can’t go wrong in these’ at this very plush exhibition

I have often thought that there would be an opportunity to make a film of George’s life or even a remake of one of his films. If that ever happened then I would put forward the former Heartbeat actor Steven Blakeley to star as George. In many ways he looks very similar, and the role he played as PC Geoff Younger is very much on the style of George Formby in his films

I personally think that he would be brilliant

BELOW a scene from Heartbeat

BELOW – Anyone wishing to see Steven act again will be able to go the The Theatre Royal at Windsor where in a few weeks he will appear in Aladdin