There was a reunion last year on 17th September 2017, of the FOUR ‘young men’ who played the accused in the Courtroom drama  The Boys Directed by Sidney Furie. The film was made at Elstree and the reshowing of the film was there too with the remaining actors Dudley Sutton, Jess Conrad,  and Tony Garnett  – sadly Ronald Lacy died in 1991 at the age of only 55.

This is a gripping story with Robert Morley, for the defence giving a beautifully delivered final summing up speech. At the end the audience burst into loud applause. After the film the Chairman of Elstree Maurice Bright gave a speck saying that he had not seen the film before but had enjoyed it very much and thought that it featured on of Robert Morley’s best screen performances.   At the end the remaining ‘Boys’ went up on stage to be interviewed – when Jess Conrad appeared Dudley Sutton said ‘Jess just looks the same. Iam so jealous.’  Of course Jess Conrad even at 81 years old, looks very good and youthful.

They all spoke highly of Robert Morley who was ‘ like a father to us and such a lovely man, brought us cakes every day’

However their recollections of Richard Todd were far less warm. He wasn’t friendly at all, in fact very remote.  Tony Garnett, who admitted to being a ‘bit stroppy in those days’, so annoyed Richard Todd that the star wanted him off the picture – and he would have been sacked if ‘ The glorious Robert Morley hadn’t intervened and with immense good humour got me off the hook’

Reading Richard Todd’s Autobiography ‘In Camera’ this film is not mentioned at length but he does say that, his part in the film took just three weeks to complete and they all got on well together.   He said though that he had a disagreement in a lunchtime chat with Robert Morley when they both had opposing political views and Robert expressed these views very forcefully. Richard Todd says that, very sensibly, he avoided such a subject again.   He also speaks highly of Robert and states just how good he was in the role.

So here we have – as often is the case – people taking about events that happened a long time ago, but having different recollections and views of what went on – or what went on as they saw it.