Carry On films

The Carry On films were a long-running series of British popular low-budget comedy films, directed by Gerald Thomas and produced by Peter Rogers. An energetic mix of parody, farce and double entendres, they are seen as classic examples of British humour.

Decline

After Rothwell ended his run as writer in 1974, the already variable quality of the series took a sharp downturn. British society had changed significantly and Carry On humour now seemed dated and innocent. Moreover fewer and fewer of the established cast were now appearing in the films; Abroad had been the last Carry On film appearance for Charles Hawtrey and Dick the last for Sid James, Hattie Jacques and Barbara Windsor. Owing to the withdrawal of American funding from British films, with a few exceptions, many of the most profitable British films during the 1970s were those adapted from television series (such as Steptoe and Son), or erotic comedies. The influence of these genres is keenly felt in the Carry On series' output of this period, with an increased sexual content and more television stars (such as Windsor Davies) appearing in place of regulars.

Related Topics:
Steptoe and Son - Windsor Davies

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• Carry On Behind (1975)

:: Basically a remake of Carry On Camping with several established Carry On regulars along with an influx new actors in main roles including Windsor Davies, Ian Lavender, and headlining guest star Elke Sommer.

Related Topics:
Ian Lavender - Elke Sommer

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• Carry On England (1976)

:: This film featured an almost entirely new cast. Although Carry On regular Kenneth Connor had a leading role the only other regulars present, Joan Sims and Peter Butterworth, had only small roles in the film. A major commercial failure, this film was withdrawn from some cinemas after just three days.

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• That's Carry On (1977)

:: A compilation of clips with specially filmed linking footage presented by Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor.

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• Carry On Emmannuelle (1978)

:: An attempt to revive the series by increasing the sexual content. This film is notable in that Jack Douglas plays a character other than his stuttering Alf Ippititimus-type persona, in this case a snooty butler, showing that he is more than capable of tackling other roles.

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