The ‘Carry On’ films

A carry-on is defined as a rumpus, a commotion, and this, with a big dose of fun, sums up the general idea of the 31 Carry On films made between 1958-78 and 1992. They parallelled the Hammer horrors in their time-frame and shoestring budget, except that they were the comedic side. There was even a parody horror, called ‘Carry On Screaming’ in 1966. Full of innuendo and slapstick, they were very popular in their first decade, but perhaps ‘carried on’ a little too long after their peak, instead of finishing in the early 1970s as Hammer had done.

Although poorly paid, there was a core group of actors and actresses for whom the series kept them in the spotlight, including Kenneth Williams (1926-88), Sid James (1913-76), Charles Hawtrey (1914-88), Joan Sims (1930-2001), Hattie Jacques (1922-80), Kenneth Connor (1918-93) and Barbara Windsor (1937-2020). Other comedy stars were also given cameo roles.

Producer Peter Rogers (1914-2009), and director Gerald Thomas (1920-93), were ever-present and every film was shot in 6-week slots at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, with only rare excursions to other locations. The films and various spin-offs, such as Christmas Specials, were repeated on television several times. Despite the predictable plots, they appealed to the silly, bawdy side of the British sense of humour.

(Top image: Luke David O’Rourke at Flickr.com / CC BY-ND 2.0)