Wikipedia

The Constant Husband

The Constant Husbandis a 1955Britishcomedy film,directed bySidney Gilliatand starringRex Harrison,Margaret Leighton,Kay Kendall,Cecil Parker,George ColeandRaymond Huntley.[3]The story was written by Gilliat together withVal Valentine,and the film was produced by Individual Pictures, Gilliat's andFrank Launder's joint production company. Because the film got caught up in the 1954 bankruptcy ofBritish Lion Film Corporation,it was not released until more than seven months after it had been finished and reviewed by theBritish Board of Film Censors.

The Constant Husband
DVD cover based on the original UK film poster
Directed bySidney Gilliat
Written bySidney Gilliat
Val Valentine
Produced bySidney Gilliat
Frank Launder
StarringRex Harrison
Margaret Leighton
Kay Kendall
Cecil Parker
CinematographyEdward Scaife
Music byMalcolm Arnold
Production
company
Individual Pictures Ltd
Distributed byBritish Lion Films(UK)
Release date
  • 21 April 1955(1955-04-21)(UK[1])
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office£162,649(UK)[2]

Plot

edit

A man wakes up in a hotel room inWales,suffering fromamnesia.He has no recollection of who he is, why he is there, or where he comes from. With the help of psychologist Doctor Llewellyn, they trace a wife and home inLondon,but they go on to discover that she is just one of many women whom he hasbigamouslymarried.

Main cast

edit

Production

edit

The film was made inShepperton Studios,with shooting finished in early June 1954,[4]just a week after the studio's owner and the film's intended distributor,British Lion Film Corporation,went into receivership on 1 June 1954.[5]The opening scenes were filmed on location atNew QuayandAberaeron,Ceredigion,Mid Wales,and others atKensington,Millbank,Wormwood Scrubs,Holborn,andSt. Paul's,London.[6]When the film was screened by the censors atBBFCon 10 September 1954, it was submitted byFrank Launder's company Launder Productions, as it did not yet have a new distributor.[7]In January 1955, Launder, Gilliat and theBoulting brothersformed a new company, British Lion Films Ltd., which took over the running of Shepperton as well as British Lion's distribution business, and the film finally received its world premiere at theLondon Pavilionon 21 April 1955.[1]

Gilliat says the film was plagued by problems with the colour stock.[8]

Reception

edit

According to theNational Film Finance Corporation,the film made a comfortable profit.[9]

According toKinematograph Weeklyit was a "money maker" at the British box office in 1955.[10]

edit

References

edit
  1. ^abThe Times, 21 April 1955, page 2:World premiere of "The Constant Husband" at the London Pavilion– found in The Times Digital Archive (subscription required) 2014-07-25
  2. ^Vincent Porter, 'The Robert Clark Account',Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television,Vol 20 No 4, 2000 p506
  3. ^"The Constant Husband".British Film Institute Collections Search.Retrieved9 August2024.
  4. ^The Times, 3 June 1954, page 2:Film production at Shepperton– found in The Times Digital Archive (subscription required) 2014-07-25
  5. ^The Times, 2 June 1954, page 6:Receiver for British Lion Film Corporation– found in The Times Digital Archive (subscription required) 2014-07-25
  6. ^The Constant HusbandArchived1 June 2015 at theWayback Machineat reelstreets
  7. ^BBFC:The Constant Husband (1954)Archived24 September 2015 at theWayback MachineLinked 2014-07-25
  8. ^Fowler, Roy; Haines, Taffy (15 May 1990)."Interview with Sidney Gilliat"(PDF).British Entertainment History Project.p. 149.Archived(PDF)from the original on 23 April 2022.Retrieved16 March2023.
  9. ^U.S. MONEY BEHIND 30% OF BRITISH FILMS: Problems for the Board of Trade The Manchester Guardian (1901-1959) [Manchester (UK)] 4 May 1956: 7
  10. ^"Other Money Makers of 1955".Kinematograph Weekly.15 December 1955. p. 5.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Constant_Husband&oldid=1243641845"