86-518: Britannia Hospital is a 1982 British black comedy film, directed by Lindsay Anderson , which targets the National Health Service and contemporary British society. It was entered into the 1982 Cannes Film Festival and Fantasporto . Britannia Hospital is the final part of Anderson's trilogy of films, written by David Sherwin , that follow the adventures of Mick Travis (portrayed by Malcolm McDowell ) as he travels through
172-702: A subsidy under the terms of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade , and would have led to objections from American film producers. An indirect levy did not qualify as a subsidy, and so was a suitable way of providing additional funding for the UK film industry whilst avoiding criticism from abroad. In 1951, the National Film Theatre was initially opened in a temporary building at the Festival of Britain . It moved to its present location on
258-646: A Rank subsidiary, also made some important films, including the Noël Coward and David Lean collaborations This Happy Breed (1944) and Blithe Spirit (1945) as well as Laurence Olivier 's Henry V (1944). By this time, Gainsborough Studios were releasing their series of critically derided but immensely popular period melodramas, including The Man in Grey (1943) and The Wicked Lady (1945). New stars, such as Margaret Lockwood and James Mason , emerged in
344-483: A certain percentage of British films. The act was technically a success, with audiences for British films becoming larger than the quota required, but it had the effect of creating a market for poor quality, low cost films, made to satisfy the quota. The "quota quickies", as they became known, are often blamed by historians for holding back the development of the industry. However, some British film makers, such as Michael Powell , learnt their craft making such films. The act
430-540: A co-founder of British National Films Company and they helped create Pinewood Studios , which opened in 1936. Also in 1936, Rank took over General Film Distributors and in 1937, Rank founded The Rank Organisation . In 1938, General Film Distributors became affiliated with Odeon Cinemas. Rising expenditure and over-optimistic expectations of expansion into the American market caused a financial crisis in 1937, after an all-time high of 192 films were released in 1936. Of
516-487: A full service. This allayed most people's fears, and the new Charing Cross Hospital, located on the site of the former Fulham Hospital , on Fulham Palace Road, was inaugurated by the Queen on 22 May 1973. The cost of building the new hospital was £15m—a staggering amount at the time. Designed by Ralph Tubbs , it consisted of a seventeen-storey building (15 floors for the hospital proper, with two machine floors above that) in
602-569: A link was proposed with Fulham and West London Hospitals. The proposal was controversial, as the residents of Fulham wanted their existing hospital to be redeveloped not taken over. A public meeting was set up with the Mayor of Fulham, and the Chairman of the hospital, Lord Inman, explained that the decision was made by the Ministry of Health, and that a new hospital would be well equipped and provide
688-615: A market share of around 7% globally and 17% in the United Kingdom. UK box-office takings totalled £1.1 billion in 2012, with 172.5 million admissions. The British Film Institute has produced a poll ranking what they consider to be the 100 greatest British films of all time, the BFI Top 100 British films . The annual BAFTA Awards hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts are considered to be
774-521: A new openness about working-class life or previously taboo issues. Charing Cross Hospital Charing Cross Hospital is district general hospital and teaching hospital located in Hammersmith in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham . The present hospital was opened in 1973, although it was originally established in 1818, approximately five miles east, in central London. It
860-817: A number of popular personalities emerged, including George Formby , Gracie Fields , Jessie Matthews and Will Hay . These stars often made several films a year, and their productions remained important for morale purposes during World War II . Many of the British films with larger budgets during the 1930s were produced by London Films , founded by Hungarian emigre Alexander Korda . The success of The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933), made at British and Dominions Elstree Studios , persuaded United Artists and The Prudential to invest in Korda's Denham Film Studios , which opened in May 1936, but both investors suffered losses as
946-561: A number of years so some of the shock had "worn off". Nonetheless, he called it "a risk... a very black comedy." Filming started in August 1981. It was filmed at Shepperton Studios , using Friern Hospital in Barnet as the exterior of the hospital in October 1981. Filming took 12 weeks. McDowell said he did the film just for his expenses, and no fee, because there was not enough money in
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#17327982019021032-516: A period in which filmmakers such as Humphrey Jennings, David Lean, Powell and Pressburger, and Carol Reed came to the fore." Published in The Times on 5 September 1939, two days after Britain declared war on Germany, George Bernard Shaw ’s letter protested against a government order to close all places of entertainment, including cinemas. ‘What agent of Chancellor Hitler is it who has suggested that we should all cower in darkness and terror “for
1118-629: A result. Korda's films before the war included Things to Come , Rembrandt (both 1936) and Knight Without Armour (1937), as well as the early Technicolour films The Drum (1938) and The Four Feathers (1939). These had followed closely on from Wings of the Morning (1937), the UK's first three-strip Technicolour feature film, made by the local offshoot of 20th Century Fox . Although some of Korda's films indulged in "unrelenting pro-Empire flag waving", those featuring Sabu turned him into "a huge international star"; "for many years" he had
1204-538: A strange and sometimes surreal Britain. From his days at boarding school in if.... (1968) to his journey from coffee salesman to film star in O Lucky Man! (1973), Travis's adventures finally come to an end in Britannia Hospital , which sees him as a muckraking reporter investigating the bizarre activities of Professor Millar, played by Graham Crowden , with whom he had had an encounter in O Lucky Man . All three films have characters in common. Some of
1290-861: A subsidiary of the French Gaumont Film Company , constructing Lime Grove Studios in West London in 1915 in the first building built in Britain solely for film production. Also in 1898, Hepworth Studios was founded in Lambeth , South London by Cecil Hepworth , the Bamforths began producing films in Yorkshire , and William Haggar began producing films in Wales . Directed by Walter R. Booth in 1901, Scrooge, or, Marley's Ghost
1376-452: A wider spectrum of people in Britain than the country's earlier films had done. These individuals, principally Karel Reisz , Lindsay Anderson and Tony Richardson , were also involved in the short lived Oxford film journal Sequence and the " Free Cinema " documentary film movement. The 1956 statement of Free Cinema, the name was coined by Anderson, asserted: "No film can be too personal. The image speaks. Sounds amplifies and comments. Size
1462-426: Is a VIP patient, striking ancillary workers (opposed to the exotic gastronomic demands of the hospital's private patients) and a less-than-cooperative Professor Millar ( Graham Crowden ), the head of the new wing. Rather than cancel the royal visit, Potter decides to go out and reason with the protestors. He strikes a deal with the protest leader—the private patients of Britannia Hospital are to be ejected and, in return,
1548-658: Is also particularly highly regarded. Under the Import Duties Act 1932 , HM Treasury levied a 75% tariff on all film imports on 6 August 1947 which became known as Dalton Duty (after Hugh Dalton then the Chancellor of the Exchequer ). The tax came into effect on 8 August, applying to all imported films, of which the overwhelming majority came from the United States; American film studio revenues from
1634-422: Is at the heart of Britannia Hospital , though I hope it's not a preachy film but a parable. A parable is a heavenly story with an earthly meaning. I hope this is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning." Anderson did an outline and sent it to Lew Grade , who was not interested. 20th Century Fox under Sandy Lieberson signed Anderson to a two-picture deal, of which one was to be Britannia Hospital . (The other
1720-641: Is host to the West London Neuroscience Centre. In addition, a day surgery unit, the Riverside Wing, was recently added. The West London Mental Health NHS Trust also has buildings on site. The hospital hosts the largest and oldest gender identity clinic in the country, with 150 operations performed annually. In 1818, Dr. Benjamin Golding established the 'West London Infirmary and Dispensary' at 16 Suffolk Street, behind
1806-403: Is irrelevant. Perfection is not an aim. An attitude means a style. A style means an attitude." Anderson, in particular, was dismissive of the commercial film industry. Their documentary films included Anderson's Every Day Except Christmas , among several sponsored by Ford of Britain , and Richardson's Momma Don't Allow . Another member of this group, John Schlesinger , made documentaries for
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#17327982019021892-493: Is part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and is a teaching hospital of the Imperial College School of Medicine . It is a tertiary referral centre for neurosurgery , and is a national centre of excellence for gestational trophoblastic disease . It currently houses the serious injuries centre for West London. In recent times, the hospital has pioneered the clinical use of CT scanning . The hospital
1978-505: Is revealed—a brain wired to machinery. Genesis is given a chance to speak and, in a robotic voice, utters the " What a piece of work is a man " speech from Hamlet , until it continuously repeats the line "How like a God". The Administration Medicos The Unions The Media The Palace And Robbie Coltrane , Patsy Byrne and Edward Hibbert had bit parts. This was the final film appearance of Arthur Lowe, who died shortly after his scenes were filmed. Lindsay Anderson says
2064-474: Is the earliest film adaptation of Charles Dickens's festive novella A Christmas Carol . Booth's The Hand of the Artist (1906) has been described as the first British animated film. In 1902, Ealing Studios was founded by Will Barker . It has become the oldest continuously operating film studio in the world. In 1902, the earliest colour film in the world was made; capturing everyday events. In 2012, it
2150-554: The Haymarket Theatre . The infirmary had been the dream of Dr. Golding, who wanted to establish a place of healing for the poor. The then Duke of York and Albany was asked to become patron; he accepted, and the hospital was thenceforth known as the Royal West London Infirmary. Following this, the then- Duchess of York and Albany and Duke of Cambridge also became patrons. In 1821, the infirmary
2236-530: The Ideal Film Company was founded in Soho, London , distributing almost 400 films by 1934, and producing 80. In 1913, stage director Maurice Elvey began directing British films, becoming Britain's most prolific film director, with almost 200 by 1957. In 1914, Elstree Studios was founded, and acquired in 1928 by German-born Ludwig Blattner , who invented a magnetic steel tape recording system that
2322-515: The Labour Minister of Health had themselves been private patients; and so I started building up a private scrapbook of newsworthy absurdities." Anderson said he was inspired by Amiel's theory that the only true principle of humanity is justice. "The man who would today say that liberty and equality are bad principles is a brave man but perhaps a necessary one since, unless they include justice, they are pernicious and self-destructive. That
2408-609: The Second World War it was decided to relocate the hospital away from central London. Several sites were considered including a large site at Northwick Park in Harrow . However, the University of London deemed that they would not be able to remain affiliated with the hospital should it move there, and the site was handed over to the Ministry of Health, who developed it into the present Northwick Park Hospital . In 1957
2494-623: The South Bank in London for the first London Film Festival on 16 October 1957 run by the BFI. During the 1950s, the British industry began to concentrate on popular comedies and World War II dramas aimed more squarely at the domestic audience. The war films were often based on true stories and made in a similar low-key style to their wartime predecessors. They helped to make stars of actors like John Mills , Jack Hawkins and Kenneth More . Some of
2580-619: The "golden age" of British cinema is usually thought to have occurred in the 1940s, during which the directors David Lean , Michael Powell , and Carol Reed produced their most critically acclaimed works. Many British actors have accrued critical success and worldwide recognition, such as Audrey Hepburn , Olivia de Havilland , Vivien Leigh , Glynis Johns , Maggie Smith , Laurence Olivier , Michael Caine , Sean Connery , Ian Mckellen , Joan Collins , Judi Dench , Julie Andrews , Daniel Day-Lewis , Gary Oldman , Emma Thompson , Anthony Hopkins , Peter O’Toole and Kate Winslet . Some of
2666-582: The 1950s, though later films had Michael Craig and Leslie Phillips in leading roles. The Carry On series began in 1958 with regular instalments appearing for the next twenty years. The Italian director-producer Mario Zampi also made a number of successful black comedies , including Laughter in Paradise (1951), The Naked Truth (1957) and Too Many Crooks (1958). Ealing Studios had continued its run of successful comedies, including The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) and The Ladykillers (1955), but
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2752-432: The 640 British production companies registered between 1925 and 1936, only 20 were still active in 1937. Moreover, the 1927 Films Act was up for renewal. The replacement Cinematograph Films Act 1938 provided incentives, via a " quality test ", for UK companies to make fewer films, but of higher quality, and to eliminate the "quota quickies". Influenced by world politics, it encouraged American investment and imports. One result
2838-797: The BBC's Monitor arts series. Together with future James Bond co-producer Harry Saltzman , dramatist John Osborne and Tony Richardson established the company Woodfall Films to produce their early feature films. These included adaptations of Richardson's stage productions of Osborne's Look Back in Anger (1959), with Richard Burton , and The Entertainer (1960) with Laurence Olivier , both from Osborne's own screenplays. Such films as Reisz's Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (also 1960), Richardson's A Taste of Honey (1961), Schlesinger's A Kind of Loving (1962) and Billy Liar (1963), and Anderson's This Sporting Life (1963) are often associated with
2924-671: The Blitz while Listen to Britain (with Stewart McAllister , 1942) looked at the home front. The Crown Film Unit , part of the Ministry of Information took over the responsibilities of the GPO Film Unit in 1940. Paul Rotha and Alberto Cavalcanti were colleagues of Jennings. British films began to make use of documentary techniques; Cavalcanti joined Ealing for Went the Day Well? (1942), Many other films helped to shape
3010-609: The British equivalent of the Academy Awards . The world's first moving picture was shot in Leeds by Louis Le Prince in 1888 and the first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by British inventor William Friese Greene , who patented the process in 1890. The first people to build and run a working 35 mm camera in Britain were Robert W. Paul and Birt Acres . They made
3096-542: The British have that we in America have not. Magna Carta , the Tower Bridge and Alfred Hitchcock, the greatest director of screen melodramas in the world." Hitchcock was then signed up to a seven-year contract by Selznick and moved to Hollywood . "The idea of a nation of devoted cinema-goers is inextricably linked with the number of classic films released during the war years. This was British cinema’s ‘golden age’,
3182-579: The F.O. (1958), and I'm All Right Jack (1959). Starring in School for Scoundrels (1960), the British Film Institute thought Terry-Thomas was "outstanding as a classic British bounder ". Popular comedy series included the "Doctor" series, beginning with Doctor in the House (1954). The series originally starred Dirk Bogarde , probably the British industry's most popular star of
3268-648: The Gainsborough films. Towards the end of the 1940s, the Rank Organisation became the dominant force behind British film-making, having acquired a number of British studios and the Gaumont chain (in 1941) to add to its Odeon Cinemas. Rank's serious financial crisis in 1949, a substantial loss and debt, resulted in the contraction of its film production. In practice, Rank maintained an industry duopoly with ABPC (later absorbed by EMI) for many years. For
3354-618: The New Pin was released. It was based on a novel by Edgar Wallace , starring Donald Calthrop, Benita Home and Fred Raines, which was made by British Lion at their Beaconsfield Studios . John Maxwell's BIP became the Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC) in 1933. ABPC's studios in Elstree came to be known as the "porridge factory", according to Lou Alexander, "for reasons more likely to do with
3440-545: The UK had been in excess of US$ 68 million in 1946. The following day, 9 August, the Motion Picture Association of America announced that no further films would be supplied to British cinemas until further notice. The Dalton Duty was ended on 3 May 1948 with the American studios again exported films to the UK though the Marshall Plan prohibited US film companies from taking foreign exchange out of
3526-453: The audience on rather a large hook. I think that if we are going to find solutions, we're not going to get any help from God, or any pre-sold political notions. The big question remains whether we are good enough or intelligent enough to survive. It was released in the United Kingdom on 27 May 1982. Most British critics lambasted the film on release, although Dilys Powell reviewed it positively, David Robinson listed it among his top ten for
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3612-422: The budget to pay his normal fee, and he wanted to work with Anderson again. Mark Hamill also did the part free plus expenses when original choice Treat Williams bowed out. During filming, Anderson needed another $ 1 million and two extra weeks to finish the film. Anderson said: The film ends with a question mark, not a solution, and people don't like that. They want to be let off the hook, and this film impales
3698-407: The characters from if.... that did not turn up in O Lucky Man! return for Britannia Hospital . The film also features Leonard Rossiter , Joan Plowright , Jill Bennett , Marsha Hunt , Fulton Mackay , Vivian Pickles , Richard Griffiths , Arthur Lowe , and Mark Hamill . The absurdities of human behaviour as we move into the twenty-first century are too extreme—and too dangerous—to permit us
3784-571: The company ceased production in 1958, after the studios had already been bought by the BBC . Less restrictive censorship towards the end of the 1950s encouraged film producer Hammer Films to embark on their series of commercially successful horror films. Beginning with adaptations of Nigel Kneale 's BBC science fiction serials The Quatermass Experiment (1955) and Quatermass II (1957), Hammer quickly graduated to The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) and Dracula (1958), both deceptively lavish and
3870-484: The duration”?’. Within two weeks of the order cinemas in the provinces were reopened, followed by central London within a month. In 1940, cinema admissions figures rose, to just over 1 billion for the year, and they continued rising to over 1.5 billion in 1943, 1944 and 1945. Humphrey Jennings began his career as a documentary film maker just before the war, in some cases working in collaboration with co-directors. London Can Take It (with Harry Wat , 1940) detailed
3956-408: The earliest British films were of everyday events, the early 20th century saw the appearance of narrative shorts, mainly comedies and melodramas. The early films were often melodramatic in tone, and there was a distinct preference for story lines already known to the audience, in particular, adaptations of Shakespeare plays and Dickens novels. In 1898, Gaumont-British Picture Corp. was founded as
4042-471: The film had its origins in 1975 with a newspaper story about the "siege of Charing Cross Hospital , when there was a big demonstration against fee-paying private patients led by a union official known as Granny Brookstern. "This immediately struck me as absurd. If you stand outside a hospital and stop ambulances going in in the name of humanity you are involved in a wonderfully absurd paradox. The story got even more wild with accusations that Granny Brookstern and
4128-478: The films with the largest ever box office returns have been made in the United Kingdom, including the fourth and fifth highest-grossing film franchises ( Harry Potter and James Bond ). The identity of the British film industry, particularly as it relates to Hollywood , has often been the subject of debate. Its history has often been affected by attempts to compete with the American industry . The career of
4214-686: The first British film Incident at Clovelly Cottage in February 1895, shortly before falling out over the camera's patent. Soon several British film companies had opened to meet the demand for new films, such as Mitchell and Kenyon in Blackburn . The Lumière brothers first brought their show to London in 1896. In 1898, American producer Charles Urban expanded the London-based Warwick Trading Company to produce British films, mostly documentary and news. Although
4300-627: The first gothic horror films in colour. The studio turned out numerous sequels and variants, with English actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee being the most regular leads. Peeping Tom (1960), a now highly regarded thriller, with horror elements, set in the contemporary period, was badly received by the critics at the time, and effectively finished the career of Michael Powell, its director. The British New Wave film makers attempted to produce social realist films (see also ' kitchen sink realism ') attempted in commercial feature films released between around 1959 and 1963 to convey narratives about
4386-443: The former British National Pictures Studios in Elstree, the facilities original owners, including producer-director Herbert Wilcox , had run into financial difficulties. One of the company's early films, Alfred Hitchcock 's Blackmail (1929), is often regarded as the first British sound feature. It was a part-talkie with a synchronised score and sound effects. Earlier in 1929, the first all-talking British feature, The Clue of
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#17327982019024472-636: The highest profile of any actor of Indian origin. Paul Robeson was also cast in leading roles when "there were hardly any opportunities" for African Americans "to play challenging roles" in their own country's productions. In 1933, the British Film Institute was established as the lead organisation for film in the UK. They set up the National Film Library in 1935 (now known as the BFI National Archive), with Ernest Lindgren as its curator. In 1934, J. Arthur Rank became
4558-404: The hospital. Charing Cross Hospital Medical School merged with Westminster Hospital Medical School to form Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School in 1984. Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School was itself integrated into Imperial College London in 1997. The Reynolds Building (built for Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School in 1976), lies adjacent to the hospital within
4644-410: The largest, controlling 180 cinemas by 1928 and up to 300 by 1929. Maxwell formed ABC Cinemas in 1927 which became a subsidiary of BIP and went on to become one of the largest in the country, together with Odeon Cinemas , founded by Oscar Deutsch , who opened his first cinema in 1928. By 1937, these three chains controlled almost a quarter of all cinemas in the country. A booking by one of these chains
4730-438: The luxury of sentimentalism or tears. But by looking at humanity objectively and without indulgence, we may hope to save it. Laughter can help. A new wing at Britannia Hospital is to be opened, and the Queen (presumably Queen Elizabeth II , but only ever referred to as H.R.H.) is due to arrive. The administrator of the hospital, Potter ( Leonard Rossiter ), is confronted with demonstrators protesting against an African dictator who
4816-489: The mid-1920s the British film industry was losing out to heavy competition from the United States, which was helped by its much larger home market – in 1914 25% of films shown in the UK were British, but by 1926 this had fallen to 5%. A slump in 1924 caused many British film studios to close, resulting in the passage of the Cinematograph Films Act 1927 to boost local production, requiring that cinemas show
4902-552: The moment, the industry hit new heights of creativity in the immediate post-war years. Among the most significant films produced during this period were David Lean 's Brief Encounter (1945) and his Dickens adaptations Great Expectations (1946) and Oliver Twist (1948), Ken Annakin 's comedy Miranda (1948) starring Glynis Johns , Carol Reed 's thrillers Odd Man Out (1947) and The Third Man (1949), and Powell and Pressburger's A Matter of Life and Death (1946), Black Narcissus (1947) and The Red Shoes (1948),
4988-580: The most commercially successful film of its year in the United States. Laurence Olivier's Hamlet (also 1948), was the first non-American film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture . Ealing Studios (financially backed by Rank) began to produce their most celebrated comedies, with three of the best remembered films, Whisky Galore (1948), Kind Hearts and Coronets and Passport to Pimlico (both 1949), being on release almost simultaneously. Their portmanteau horror film Dead of Night (1945)
5074-612: The most successful included The Cruel Sea (1953), The Dam Busters (1954), The Colditz Story (1955) and Reach for the Sky (1956). The Rank Organisation produced some comedy successes, such as Genevieve (1953). The writer/director/producer team of twin brothers John and Roy Boulting also produced a series of successful satires on British life and institutions, beginning with Private's Progress (1956), and continuing with (among others) Brothers in Law (1957), Carlton-Browne of
5160-531: The move, the hospital kept the name 'Charing Cross'; at first it was called 'Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham' but eventually the 'Fulham' part was dropped. The Charing Cross Hospital building in Agar Street (a Grade II listed building since 1970) was converted for use in the 1990s and became Charing Cross police station . The following are notable alumni: London Buses routes 190 , 211 , 220 , 295 and night routes N11 , N33 , N72 and N97 serve
5246-430: The murder of a patient, Macready ( Alan Bates ). As mayhem ensues outside, Travis is also murdered and his head used as part of a grim Frankenstein -like experiment which goes hideously wrong. Eventually, the protestors break into the hospital and attempt to disrupt Millar's presentation of his Genesis Project, in which he claims he has perfected mankind. In front of the assembled audience of Royalty and commoners, Genesis
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#17327982019025332-635: The name of the Royal West London Infirmary was changed to the more appropriate 'Charing Cross Hospital'. Plans were drawn up by architect Decimus Burton in 1830 and a site was found, just off the Strand (at what is today Agar Street). On 15 September 1831 the foundation stone was laid by the Duke of Sussex. The first completed ward was named after the daughter of the Duchess of Kent, Princess Victoria, who eventually became Queen Victoria . The principal ward for men
5418-727: The nations their films played in. Following the Cinematograph Film Production (Special Loans) Act 1949, the National Film Finance Corporation (NFFC) was established as a British film funding agency. The Eady Levy , named after Sir Wilfred Eady was a tax on box office receipts in the United Kingdom in order to support the British Film industry. It was established in 1950 coming into effect in 1957. A direct governmental payment to British-based producers would have qualified as
5504-538: The next few years – in fact, after a major rebuild in 1877 the hospital had doubled in size. The hospital was further extended in 1902. In 1926, the Royal Westminster Ophthalmic Hospital was merged with Charing Cross Hospital. With the advent of the Blitz in 1940, the hospital staff, students, equipment and patients were moved to Chaulden House, Boxmoor , Hertfordshire . In 1947, the hospital moved back to Charing Cross. After
5590-603: The popular image of the nation at war. Among the best known of these films are In Which We Serve (1942), We Dive at Dawn (1943), Millions Like Us (1943) and The Way Ahead (1944). The war years also saw the emergence of The Archers partnership between director Michael Powell and the Hungarian-born writer-producer Emeric Pressburger with films such as The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) and A Canterbury Tale (1944). Two Cities Films , an independent production company releasing their films through
5676-531: The producer Alexander Korda was marked by this objective, the Rank Organisation attempted to do so in the 1940s, and Goldcrest in the 1980s. Numerous British-born directors, including Alfred Hitchcock , Christopher Nolan and Ridley Scott , and performers, such as Charlie Chaplin and Cary Grant , have achieved success primarily through their work in the United States. In 2009, British films grossed around $ 2 billion worldwide and achieved
5762-458: The project. He raised $ 1 million from Britain's National Film Finance Corporation and $ 3 million from EMI . Hassan says that there was discussion at the NFFC whether they should support a film by Anderson, who had made a number of movies, but ultimately decided he was an "outsider". Hassan attributes the fact that the budget was raised to Parsons's persistence, and the fact the script had been around
5848-533: The protestors allow a number of ambulances into the hospital. However, unbeknown to the protestors, these ambulances actually contain the Queen Mother and her entourage. Mick Travis ( Malcolm McDowell ) is a reporter who is shooting a clandestine documentary about the hospital and its dubious practices. He manages to get inside with the help of a sympathetic nurse ( Marsha Hunt ) and starts to investigate Millar's sinister scientific experimentation, including
5934-452: The quantity of films that the company turned out, than their quality". Elstree (strictly speaking almost all the studios were in neighbouring Borehamwood ) became the centre of the British film industry, with six film complexes over the years all in close proximity to each other. By 1927, the largest cinema chains in the United Kingdom consisted of around 20 cinemas but the following year Gaumont-British expanded significantly to become
6020-473: The school of realist Documentary Film Movement , from 1933 associated with the GPO Film Unit . It was Grierson who coined the term " documentary " to describe a non-fiction film, and he produced the movement's most celebrated early films, Night Mail (1936), written and directed by Basil Wright and Harry Watt , and incorporating the poem by W. H. Auden towards the end of the short. Music halls also proved influential in comedy films of this period, and
6106-423: The shape of a cross, along with several lower-level buildings. The design was notable for the lack of lifts to meet the capacity required to move patients around in their beds. Porters often waited 1–2 hours trying to get patients from wards to X-ray and back. Three high-rise residential blocks were built to house medical staff, nurses and medical students—called Golding, Parsons and Cliff houses, respectively. Despite
6192-426: The top floor, which had been left as an empty shell, was completed. In 1856 Dr. Golding retired as Director of Charing Cross Hospital Medical School. The hospital encountered hard times after several new hospitals, with larger medical schools, were established in central London. However, Charing Cross Hospital weathered the storm: in 1866 it had professional nursing staff, and the hospital was enlarged several times over
6278-505: The war. By now contracted to Gaumont British, Alfred Hitchcock had settled on the thriller genre by the mid-1930s with The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934), The 39 Steps (1935) and The Lady Vanishes (1938). Lauded in Britain where he was dubbed "Alfred the Great" by Picturegoer magazine, Hitchcock's reputation was beginning to develop overseas, with a New York Times feature writer asserting; "Three unique and valuable institutions
6364-538: The year, and Geoff Daniel chose it as his film of the year. Critic Ian Haydn Smith considers Britannia Hospital the "nadir" of Anderson's career. "Replacing satire with broad comedy, the film fails on every level in its attempt to critique the state of the National Health Service ". The film won the "Audience Jury Award" at Fantasporto . Recent scholarship has attempted to reappraise the film in reference to Anderson's previous work, addressing themes such as spectatorship, politics and authoritarianism Britannia Hospital
6450-711: Was adopted by the BBC in 1930. In 1915, the Kinematograph Renters’ Society of Great Britain and Ireland was formed to represent the film distribution companies. It is the oldest film trade body in the world. It was known as the Society of Film Distributors until it changed its name again to the Film Distributors’ Association (FDA). In 1920, Gaumont opened Islington Studios , where Alfred Hitchcock got his start, selling out to Gainsborough Pictures in 1927. Also in 1920 Cricklewood Studios
6536-722: Was found by the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford after lying forgotten in an old tin for 110 years. The previous title for earliest colour film, using Urban's inferior Kinemacolor process, was thought to date from 1909. The re-discovered films were made by pioneer Edward Raymond Turner from London who patented his process on 22 March 1899. In 1909, Urban formed the Natural Color Kinematograph Company , which produced early colour films using his patented Kinemacolor process. This
6622-490: Was founded by Sir Oswald Stoll , becoming Britain's largest film studio, known for Fu Manchu and Sherlock Holmes film series. In 1920, the short-lived company Minerva Films was founded in London by the actor Leslie Howard (also producer and director) and his friend and story editor Adrian Brunel . Some of their early films include four written by A. A. Milne including The Bump , starring C. Aubrey Smith ; Twice Two ; Five Pound Reward ; and Bookworms . By
6708-468: Was indispensable for the success of any British film. With the advent of sound films, many foreign actors were in less demand, with English received pronunciation commonly used; for example, the voice of Czech actress Anny Ondra in Blackmail was substituted by an off-camera Joan Barry during Ondra's scenes. Starting with John Grierson 's Drifters (also 1929), the period saw the emergence of
6794-472: Was later challenged in court by Greene, causing the company to go out of business in 1914. In 1903, Cecil Hepworth and Percy Stow directed Alice in Wonderland , the first film adaptation of Lewis Carroll 's children's book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland . Also in 1903, Frank Mottershaw of Sheffield produced the film A Daring Daylight Robbery , which launched the chase genre. In 1911,
6880-584: Was modified with the Cinematograph Films Act 1938 assisted the British film industry by specifying only films made by and shot in Great Britain would be included in the quota, an act that severely reduced Canadian and Australian film production. The biggest star of the silent era, English comedian Charlie Chaplin , was Hollywood -based. Scottish solicitor John Maxwell founded British International Pictures (BIP) in 1927. Based at
6966-500: Was named Golding Ward, after the founder. The hospital itself was completed in January 1834, at a total cost of £20,000, and in October of that year, the 22 medical students were transferred from Villiers Street to the new building. The hospital and medical school continued to expand. When King's College London opened, it needed a medical school and offered Charing Cross a substantial amount of money to train their students. Dr Golding
7052-413: Was opposed to the idea and in 1839, after several years of negotiation, King's College decided to set up their own medical school. During those years, the school saw difficult times, and the number of students enrolling plummeted. By 1840, faith in the school had been restored and the number of students increased dramatically; however, Dr. Golding suffered a stroke. By 1854 the hospital was flourishing and
7138-412: Was reaching capacity, treating nearly 10,000 patients a year, so a new site was found, at 28 Villiers Street, near Charing Cross in the heart of the metropolis. The infirmary had room for twelve beds. Shortly afterwards, a plan was put in place to establish a medical school alongside the infirmary. Over the years, the list of benefactors and patrons grew, including many from the royal family. In 1827,
7224-568: Was released in the United Kingdom on Blu-ray Disc for the first time on 29 June 2020 under Powerhouse Films. Special features include an audio interview with Anderson, separate new interviews with actors Pettifer and Askwith, interview with film editor Michael Ellis and theatrical trailers. Cinema of the United Kingdom The oldest known surviving film (from 1888) was shot in the United Kingdom as well as early colour films. While film production reached an all-time high in 1936,
7310-530: Was the creation of MGM-British , an English subsidiary of the largest American studio, which produced four films before the war, including Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939). The new venture was initially based at Denham Studios. Korda himself lost control of the facility in 1939 to the Rank Organisation. Circumstances forced Korda's The Thief of Bagdad (1940), a spectacular fantasy film, to be completed in California, where Korda continued his film career during
7396-532: Was to be Dress Grey written by Gore Vidal ). Anderson arranged for David Sherwin to write a script. Sherwin said the film was not "about a hospital about all. It's about everything. It's not even a film that's just about Britain." Lieberson left Fox and the studio dropped the project. Mamoun Hassan of the National Film Finance Corporation said he thought they were "too shocked by it". After this, producer Clive Parsons championed
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