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Bank Holiday main poster

Bank Holiday

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6.0/10 • 14

1938-01-271h 26m

ComedyDrama

A 1930s British summer Bank Holiday starts at midday on Saturday with a rush for the trains to the seaside. Doreen and Milly are off to a beauty contest, Geoffrey and Catherine are having an illicit weekend in the Grand Hotel and May and the kids are set for a more straightforward holiday of sea, sand, and pub. Meanwhile, the manager and performers on the pier are praying for rain.

Directors
Carol Reed
Writters
Roger Burford, Rodney Ackland
Editors
Roger Burford, R. E. Dearing

Top Billed Cast

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  1. John Lodge

    John Lodge

    Stephen Howard

  2. Margaret Lockwood

    Margaret Lockwood

    Catherine Lawrence

  3. Hugh Williams

    Hugh Williams

    Geoffrey

  4. Rène Ray

    Rène Ray

    Doreen Richards

  5. Merle Tottenham

    Merle Tottenham

    Milly

  6. Linden Travers

    Linden Travers

    Ann Howard

  7. Wally Patch

    Wally Patch

    Arthur

  8. Kathleen Harrison

    Kathleen Harrison

    May

  9. Garry Marsh

    Garry Marsh

    Follies Manager

Reviews1

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CinemaSerf Avatar

CinemaSerf

Jun 20, 2022

6/10

I wasn't around in 1938 (neither were my folks), but I can still recognise much of the sentiment of this film as the British obsession with the seaside is demonstrated, warts and all, in this lightly comedic assessment of our buckets and spade escapades at the weekend (sun shining or not!). Carol Reed has a couple of different familial examples for us to follow, the principals being the gorgeous Margaret Lockwood ("Catherine") and her beau "Geoffrey" (Hugh Williams), but we also have a young girl traveling to be in a beauty contest, and a family with three kids and a dad who just wants to find the peace and quiet of the "Queen's Head" pub. The Lockwood/Wiliams storyline is the more interesting - she, a nurse, had left her work the previous day having had to deal with the tragic death of the wife of "Stephen" (John Lodge), whom she had been caring for. Despite the best efforts of her fiancée and of the distractions of them trying to find an hotel, she cannot focus on her holiday. Has she changed allegiances? The other themes interweave nicely, if insubstantially, and there is loads of charming period photography of a holiday culture that has long since departed... It's not anyone's finest work. It does lack focus, the dialogue is a bit strained at times, the plot a bit stereotyped and cluttered - but I still rather enjoyed it.

Media

  • Bank Holiday poster
  • Bank Holiday poster
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  • Bank Holiday poster
  • Bank Holiday poster

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Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
--
Revenue
--
Keywords
hotelbeachnurseholidayromancebrighton, englandhospitalpierseaside