| Miss London Ltd. | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Val Guest |
| Written by | Marriott Edgar Val Guest |
| Produced by | Edward Black |
| Cinematography | Basil Emmott |
| Edited by | R. E. Dearing |
| Music by | Bob Busby |
Production company | Lime Grove Studios (credited asGaumont British) |
| Distributed by | Gainsborough Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 99 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Miss London Ltd. is a 1943 Britishblack-and-whitecomedymusical directed byVal Guest and starringArthur Askey andEvelyn Dall.[1][2] It was written by Guest andMarriott Edgar and produced byEdward Black forGainsborough Pictures.[3] It was Guest's directorial debut.[4]
Arthur Boden runs "Miss London", the escort agency he inherited from his mother. Soon he is joined by his new American partner, Terry Arden, who has inherited half of the agency from her parents. The first thing she accomplishes is to clean up the office. To renew the files of escort ladies Boden and Terry go searching. Boden is assigned to a railway station where he finds clerk Gail Martin to hire.[5] The opening sequence of the film features Martin singing "The 8.50 Choo Choo For Waterloo Choo" atWaterloo station.
The film features a surreal self-parodying sequence in which Boden, in order to gain entrance to a hotel, pretends to be the famous Arthur Askey, using some of his catchphrases. Other spoofs include Askey and Dall in a routine asFred Astaire andGinger Rogers and, with Shiner, as the threeMarx Brothers.
Guest wrote the script which was going to be directed by Marcel Verney. Guest used the reviews for his 1942 shortThe Nose Has It to get the job directing the film and Ted Black agreed. Guest wrote a part for Jean Kent especially and says Arthur Crabtree was very helpful telling him about camera angles.[4] Guest says the film was "a big success."[4]
The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "There are a number of appalling longeurs (mainly in the crooning sequences) during which the film loses speed, but in other parts whers Askey is allowed his head there are some very amusing moments, and his acting is now considerably better than in his recent films. Jack Train, as Askey's stooge, Max Bacon as a coy and romantically-minded head waiter, and Richard Hearne as a jitterbugging commodore, add to the general comedy atmosphere. The girls, headed by crooners Evelyn Dall and Anne Shelton, have the hard glamour and comely bodies wanted by "escort girls" and the general situations lend themselves to some smut, and occasionally a little wit in the dialogue."[6]
InBritish Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959David Quinlan rated the film as "average", writing: "Good songs (lyrics by director Val Guest) and some amusing moments; a bit long."[7]
Leslie Halliwell said: "Flagwaving light entertainment with popular performers of the time."[8]
All songs by Val Guest andManning Sherwin.