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63-426: The Lady Vanishes is a 1938 British mystery thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock , starring Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave . Written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder , based on the 1936 novel The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White , the film is about an English tourist travelling by train in continental Europe who discovers that her elderly travelling companion seems to have disappeared from

126-667: A black coat and smoking a cigarette, near the end of the film. The film marks the first appearance of the comedy double-act Charters and Caldicott (played by Naunton Wayne and Basil Radford). The film was shot at Islington Studios , Shepherd's Bush and on location in Hampshire at Longmoor Military Camp , the site of the Longmoor Military Railway . It was the first film to be made under an agreement between Gaumont-British and MGM , in which Gaumont provided MGM with some of their Gainsborough films for release in

189-407: A branch line, where soldiers wait. Gilbert and Iris inform their fellow passengers what is happening. A uniformed soldier boards and requests that they all accompany him. They knock him out and take his pistol. Another soldier fires, wounding Charters in the hand. During the ensuing gunfight, Miss Froy tells Gilbert and Iris that she must get away as she is actually a spy. Just in case, she gives them

252-601: A compartment with Miss Froy and several strangers. She joins Miss Froy in the dining car for tea. Soon after, they return to their compartment, where Iris falls asleep. When Iris wakes up, Miss Froy has vanished, and the other passengers in the compartment and some of the train staff deny having seen her. Todhunter pretends not to remember her to avoid drawing attention to his liaison with his mistress. Iris searches for Miss Froy with Gilbert's assistance. Brain surgeon Dr. Hartz says Iris may be suffering from "concussion-related hallucinations." Fearing that any delay would make them miss

315-546: A message (encoded in a tune) to deliver to the Foreign Office in Whitehall —the same tune that the murdered street musician performed for her. Miss Froy then runs into the forest, and those on the train are not sure whether or not she is shot. Todhunter attempts to surrender, waving a white handkerchief, and is shot dead. Gilbert and Caldicott commandeer the locomotive, but the knocked out soldier wakes up and threatens

378-431: A realistic context. For example, when Iris faints on the train, rather than extraneous noises to denote delirium, only the sound of the train is heard. Another striking use of sound is how evil things are often heard before they are shown. The evil Dr. Hartz often is first heard before he appears on screen, representing an aural intrusion "not so much an invasion of privacy as of security". When The Lady Vanishes opened in

441-531: A report by management consultant group Collinson Grant was made public by Andrew Mackinlay . The report severely criticised the FCO's management structure, noting: The Foreign Office commissioned the report to highlight areas which would help it achieve its pledge to reduce spending by £87 million over three years. In response to the report being made public, the Foreign Office stated it had already implemented

504-482: A review of the FCO's strategic priorities. One of the key messages of these discussions was the conclusion that the existing framework of ten international strategic priorities, dating from 2003, was no longer appropriate. Although the framework had been useful in helping the FCO plan its work and allocate its resources, there was agreement that it needed a new framework to drive its work forward. The new strategic framework consists of three core elements: In August 2005,

567-405: A score of 98 out of 100, based on reviews from 17 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". In 2016, Empire ranked the film at No. 82 on their list of "The 100 best British films". In 2022, Time Out magazine ranked the film at No. 54 on its list of "The 100 best thriller films of all time". The Lady Vanishes was named Best Picture of 1938 by The New York Times . In 1939, Hitchcock received

630-529: A wave of popular theatrical straight mystery films were released theatrically including Kenneth Brannagh 's Murder on the Orient Express (2017) and Rian Johnson 's Knives Out (2019) as well as on streaming services with the parodic Murder Mystery (2019) starring Adam Sandler . Mystery films mainly focus on a crime or a puzzle , usually a murder , which must then be solved by policemen , private detectives , or amateur sleuths. The viewer

693-479: Is also a modern-languages professor character who acts as Iris's and Max's interpreter who does not appear in the film. The cricket-obsessed characters Charters and Caldicott were created especially for the film and do not appear in the novel. The plot has clear references to the political situation leading up to the Second World War. The British characters, originally trying their hardest to keep out of

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756-461: Is blessed by great characters and many witty and imaginative touches, in particular the conceit by which the passengers are each given selfish motives for refusing to verify Iris' story. As well as the chemistry between the two leads, the film has some of Hitchcock's best character parts, with Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne particularly good value as the cricket obsessed Charters and Caldicott. The American film critic and historian Leonard Maltin gave

819-401: Is involved in the conspiracy and tells them they have been drugged. However the false nun, revealed to be a British woman in costume, did not put the drug into their drinks out of loyalty to her fellow countrymen. Gilbert and Iris escape, free Miss Froy and replace her with Madame Kummer. When the train stops near the border, Dr. Hartz discovers the switch. He has part of the train diverted onto

882-416: Is presented with a series of suspects who have a motive to commit the crime but did not actually do it, and whom the investigator must eliminate during the course of the investigation. At times the viewer is presented with information not available to the main character. The central character usually explores the unsolved crime, unmasks the perpetrator, and puts an end to the effects of the villainy. During

945-660: Is responsible for representing and promoting British interests worldwide. The head of the FCDO is the secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs , commonly abbreviated to "foreign secretary". This is regarded as one of the four most prestigious positions in the Cabinet – the Great Offices of State – alongside those of Prime Minister , Chancellor of the Exchequer and Home Secretary . David Lammy

1008-727: Is the ministry of foreign affairs and a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom . The office was created on 2 September 2020 through the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID). The FCO was itself created in 1968 by the merger of the Foreign Office (FO) and the Commonwealth Office . The department in its various forms

1071-477: Is to support efforts to achieve a two-state solution . Funding a particular project for a limited period of time does not mean that we endorse every single action or public comment made by an NGO or by its employees." In September 2012, the FCO and the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs signed a Memorandum of Understanding on diplomatic cooperation, which promotes the co-location of embassies,

1134-585: The Colonial Office , from 1966 to 1968 by the Commonwealth Office , from 1968 to 2020 by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office , and since 2020 by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (this did not include protectorates , which fell under the purview of the Foreign Office , or to British India , which had been administered by the East India Company until 1858, and thereafter by

1197-882: The Crime Doctor , Warren William as the Lone Wolf and Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes. These smaller budget films led to more major productions such as John Huston 's The Maltese Falcon (1941) while Murder, My Sweet (1944) introduced the character Philip Marlowe to film. Marlowe would appear again in The Big Sleep (1946) while other films author Martin Rubin deemed as notable detective mysteries included Laura (1944). These detective films drew upon thriller and thriller-related genres with their nocturnal atmosphere and style influenced by expressionism . They often overlapped with film noir , which arose in

1260-775: The First World War , the Arab Bureau was set up within the British Foreign Office as a section of the Cairo Intelligence Department . During the early Cold War an important department was the Information Research Department (IRD) which was used to create propaganda against socialist and anti-colonial movements. The Foreign Office hired its first woman diplomat, Monica Milne , in 1946. The FCO

1323-583: The India Office ). This arrangement has been subject to criticism in the UK and in the overseas territories. For example, the chief minister of Anguilla , Victor Banks , said: "We are not foreign; neither are we members of the Commonwealth , so we should have a different interface with the UK that is based on mutual respect". There have been numerous suggestions on ways to improve the relationship between

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1386-503: The New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director, the only time Hitchcock received an award for his directing. The cricket-obsessed Charters and Caldicott were created for the film, but became popular in their own right, and appeared in a series of films, radio programmes and a much later TV series. The Lady Vanishes is copyrighted worldwide. Hitchcock's British films were public domain in

1449-453: The silent film era, including numerous films involving Sherlock Holmes, Boston Blackie and The Lone Wolf . Mystery and detective films were among the most popular genres of the silent film era. This ranged to American, British, German and Danish adaptations of Sherlock Holmes and European series like Nick Carter , Nat Pinkerton and Miss Nobody. With the beginning of sound film , mystery film series came into their own with Philo Vance in

1512-425: The 1910s either owed to Sherlock Holmes but that contemporary reviews such as that of Moving Picture World in 1911 bemoaned the lack of a proper Sherlock Holmes adaptation in "Doctor Doyle's finished style." By 1915, the same trade paper stated that "strange as it may seem, the story of crime mystery is fast degenerating into one of stock properties." There were several mystery and detective films produced during

1575-535: The 1929 film The Canary Murder Case .A series of films continued in until 1947. Other series followed such as Charlie Chan which began in 1931 and ended in 1949 with 44 films produced. In the 1930s, most of the major Hollywood film studios produced mystery series, with MGM having Nick and Nora Charles and Joel and Garda Sloane, Warner Bros. having Perry Mason , Torchy Blane , Brass Bancroft and Nancy Drew . Universal had Bill Crane while Fox had Charlie Chan and Mr. Moto . American mystery film series of

1638-568: The 1930s predominantly relied on mystery literature for inspiration. About every character from the 1930s drew from literature, such as Charlie Chan, Nick and Nora Charles, Thatcher Colt , Perry Mason, and Mr. Wong . The 1930s featured many female detectives of various ages from Nancy Drew, Torchy Blane and Hildegarde Withers while the 1940s had none. Productions in the 1930s were occasionally A-budget pictures such as The Black Camel (1931), Aresene Lupin (1932) and The Thin Man (1934). By

1701-399: The 1930s with major studios featuring detectives like Nick and Nora Charles , Perry Mason , Nancy Drew and Charlie Chan . While original mystery film series were based on novels, by the 1940s many were sourced from comics and radio series. Towards the 1940s these series were predominantly produced as b-movies , with nearly no mystery series being developed by the 1950s. Around the 2020s

1764-549: The 1940s, film detectives came from multiple sources such as radio and comic strips and many others had original scripts. MGM, Warner Brothers, and Paramount had generally halted their production of mystery films by 1942 leaving production to these films being made by RKO , Columbia , Universal and other more minor studios. This led to what author Ron Backer described as 1940s mystery films as being "almost always B-productions" with actors who were "past their prime". These included Chester Morris as Boston Blackie, Warner Baxter as

1827-402: The 19th century, it was not infrequent for the Foreign Office to approach The Times newspaper and ask for continental intelligence, which was often superior to that conveyed by official sources. Examples of journalists who specialized in foreign affairs and were well connected to politicians included: Henry Southern , Valentine Chirol , Harold Nicolson, and Robert Bruce Lockhart . During

1890-478: The 31st best British film ever. It is one of Hitchcock's most renowned British films, and the first of three screen versions of White's novel as of January 2021. After visiting the fictional country of Bandrika, English tourist Iris Henderson is returning home to get married, but an avalanche blocks the railway line. The stranded passengers are forced to spend the night at a hotel. In the same predicament are Charters and Caldicott , cricket enthusiasts anxious to see

1953-520: The BBC, Jamie Russell gave the film four out of five stars, calling it a "craftily sophisticated thriller" and a "cracking piece of entertainment". In his review for BFI Screenonline , Mark Duguid wrote that the film was "arguably the most accomplished, and certainly the wittiest of Hitchcock's British films, and is up there with the best of his American work". Duguid singled out the young writing partnership of Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, noting: The story

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2016-639: The Colonial Office in 1925. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office held responsibility for international development issues between 1970 and 1974, and again between 1979 and 1997. The National Archives website contains a government timeline to show the departments responsible for foreign affairs from 1945. From 1997, international development became the responsibility of the separate Department for International Development . When David Miliband took over as Foreign Secretary in June 2007, he set in hand

2079-706: The FCDO are scrutinised by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee . According to the FCDO website, the department's key responsibilities (as of 2020) are as follows: In addition to the above responsibilities, the FCDO is responsible for the British Overseas Territories , which had previously been administered from 1782 to 1801 by the Home Office , from 1801 to 1854 by the War and Colonial Office , from 1854 to 1966 by

2142-442: The Foreign Office, but in the waiting room Gilbert realizes he cannot remember the vital tune. As they are led into the office, Gilbert and Iris hear it. The doors open, revealing Miss Froy playing the tune on a piano. The Lady Vanishes was originally called The Lost Lady , and Irish director Roy William Neill was assigned by producer Edward Black to make it. A crew was dispatched to Yugoslavia to do background shots, but when

2205-918: The Nile (2022). Other variations of included Rian Johnson 's Knives Out which was not an adaptation of a golden age work, but was Johnson's first foray into the "puzzle-mystery" style, and was the second highest-grossing film in America in 2019. Foreign Office King Charles III [REDACTED] William, Prince of Wales [REDACTED] Charles III ( King-in-Council ) [REDACTED] Starmer ministry ( L ) Keir Starmer ( L ) Angela Rayner ( L ) ( King-in-Parliament ) [REDACTED] Charles III [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The Lord Reed The Lord Hodge Andrew Bailey Monetary Policy Committee The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office ( FCDO )

2268-562: The UK it was an immediate hit, becoming the most successful British film to that date. It was also very successful when it opened in New York. In a contemporary review, the Monthly Film Bulletin described the film as an "out of the ordinary and exciting thriller", praising Hitchcock's direction and the cast, especially Michael Redgrave, Paul Lukas and Dame May Whitty . The film has retained its popularity; in his review for

2331-625: The UK, for which MGM would pay half the production costs if MGM decided to release the film in the US. In the case of The Lady Vanishes , however, 20th Century-Fox handled the American release. Filming was briefly interrupted by an electricians' strike. Elisabeth Weis contends that Hitchcock's use of sound in The Lady Vanishes uses the "classical style" – that is, that the director eschews expressionistic sounds in favour of sounds heard in

2394-595: The United States for a while. They have been heavily bootlegged on home video. Despite this, various licensed releases have appeared on Blu-ray, DVD and video on demand worldwide from the likes of Network Distributing in the UK and The Criterion Collection in the United States. Mystery film While cinema featured characters such as Sherlock Holmes in the early 1900s, several other Sherlock Holmes likes characters appeared such as Boston Blackie and The Lone Wolf . Several series of mystery films started in

2457-480: The Yugoslav police accidentally discovered that they were not well-portrayed in the script, they kicked the crew out of the country, and Black scrapped the project. A year later, Hitchcock could not come up with a property to direct to fulfill his contract with Black, so he accepted when Black offered The Lost Lady to him. Hitchcock worked with the writers to make some changes to tighten up the opening and ending of

2520-466: The baggage car. However, they are attacked by magician Signor Doppo who was in Iris's compartment. They lose the glasses in the struggle and Doppo escapes. Iris notices that the nun accompanying Dr. Hartz's patient is wearing high heels, and they suspect that patient has been replaced by Miss Froy. Dr. Hartz shares a drink with them in the dining car and takes them back to a compartment, where he admits that he

2583-612: The blessing of a same-sex marriage . In 2012, the Foreign Office was criticised by Gerald Steinberg of the Jerusalem-based research institute NGO Monitor , saying that the Foreign Office and the Department for International Development provided more than £500,000 in funding to Palestinian NGOs which he said "promote political attacks on Israel". In response, a spokesman for the Foreign Office said "we are very careful about who and what we fund. The objective of our funding

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2646-417: The classical mystery fiction, such as the parodic Murder Mystery starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston which was one of Netflix's most popular films of 2019. Sandberg noted that only by the 2020s, specifically with Kenneth Branagh 's 2017 The Murder on the Orient Express had the genre been financially successful again with more than $ 350 million grossed worldwide, leading to a sequel Death on

2709-416: The conflict, end up working together to fight off the jack-booted foreigners, while the lawyer who wishes to negotiate with the attackers by waving a white flag is shot and killed. At first, Hitchcock considered Lilli Palmer for the female lead, but went instead with Margaret Lockwood, who was at the time relatively unknown. Lockwood was attracted to the heroines of Ethel Lina White 's stories, and accepted

2772-473: The cricket match, Charters and Caldicott also claim not to remember Miss Froy. Angry at her lover for his reluctance to pursue a divorce, Todhunter's mistress admits to seeing Miss Froy. At the first stop, Dr. Hartz's patient, whose head is completely covered in bandages, is brought aboard on a stretcher and accompanied by an apparently deaf-mute nun. A woman dressed exactly like Miss Froy, Madame Kummer, appears in her place and claims to have helped Iris after she

2835-510: The director's three previous efforts had done poorly at the box office, The Lady Vanishes was widely successful, and confirmed American producer David O. Selznick 's belief that Hitchcock indeed had a future in Hollywood cinema. The British Film Institute ranked The Lady Vanishes the 35th best British film of the 20th century . In 2017, a poll of 150 actors, directors, writers, producers and critics for Time Out magazine saw it ranked

2898-406: The early 20th century, there was substantial overlap between the genres of detective film and horror film , and the term "mystery" was used to encompass both. The works of Arthur Conan Doyle were often adapted to the screen in early cinema, specifically with Sherlock Holmes such as Sherlock Holmes Baffled (1900). Gary Don Rhodes wrote that the large volume of detective films released in

2961-399: The film four out of four stars in his Movie Guide and included the film in his list of 100 Must-See Films of the 20th Century. The Guardian called the film "one of the greatest train movies from the genre's golden era", and a contender for the "title of best comedy thriller ever made". The film frequently ranks among the best British films of all time. On  Metacritic , it has

3024-463: The joint provision of consular services, and common crisis response. The project has been criticised for further diminishing the UK's influence in Europe. In 2011, the then Foreign Secretary, William Hague , announced the government's intention to open a number of new diplomatic posts in order to enhance the UK's overseas network. As such, eight new embassies and six new consulates were opened around

3087-468: The last days of a Test match in Manchester , and Miss Froy, a governess and music teacher. Miss Froy listens to a folk singer in the street, but he is strangled to death by an unseen murderer. That evening, Iris is bothered by a loud noise from the room above hers. It is caused by Gilbert Redman, an ethnomusicologist who plays the clarinet for local folk dancers. She attempts to get him removed from

3150-468: The local authorities if it came out. Iris' mental confusion is due to sunstroke, not a blow to the head. In White's novel, the wheel keeps spinning: the train never stops, and there is no final shoot-out. Additionally, the supporting cast differs somewhat; for instance, in the novel, the Gilbert character is Max Hare, a young British engineer building a dam in the hills who knows the local language, and there

3213-427: The mid-1940s and was coined by French critics in 1946. The style was not acknowledge by American filmmakers, critics or audiences while these films were being developed until the 1970s. Mystery films series disappeared by the 1950s. With the exception of Miss Marple films in the 1960s, it was rare to find films with a female lead that had any sequels. Bran Nicol found that the more traditional "clue-puzzle mystery"

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3276-573: The overseas territories and the UK. Suggestions have included setting up a dedicated department to handle relations with the overseas territories, and the absorption of the Overseas Territories Directorate (OTD) in the Cabinet Office , thus affording the overseas territories with better connections to the centre of government. The FCDO ministers are as follows, with cabinet ministers in bold: The Foreign Office

3339-438: The report's recommendations. In 2009, Gordon Brown created the position of Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) to the FCO. The first science adviser was David Clary . On 25 April 2010, the department apologised after The Sunday Telegraph obtained a "foolish" document calling for the upcoming September visit of Pope Benedict XVI to be marked by the launch of "Benedict-branded" condoms , the opening of an abortion clinic and

3402-465: The rest of the guests. The false nun escapes through a side door and switches the tracks but is shot in the leg; however, Caldicott and Gilbert manage to pull her up into the train before she is left behind. In London, Charters and Caldicott discover the Test Match has been cancelled due to flooding. Seeing her fiancé from a distance, Iris jumps into a cab with Gilbert, who kisses her. They arrive at

3465-587: The role. Michael Redgrave was also unknown to the cinema audience, but was a rising stage star at the time. He was reluctant to leave the stage to do the film, but was convinced by John Gielgud to do so. As it happened, the film, Redgrave's first leading role, made him an international star. However, according to Robert Osborne , host of Turner Classic Movies , Redgrave and Hitchcock did not get along; Redgrave wanted more rehearsals, while Hitchcock valued spontaneity more. The two never worked together again. Alfred Hitchcock can be seen at Victoria Station , wearing

3528-410: The room, but fails after he confronts her. The next morning at the railway station, Iris is attempting to return Miss Froy's glasses when she is hit on the head by a large planter dropped from above. Miss Froy helps her onto the train. Also on board are Charters and Caldicott, Gilbert, lawyer Eric Todhunter and his mistress, who is passing herself off as "Mrs. Todhunter." Iris faints and then comes to in

3591-464: The story, but otherwise the script did not change much. As was the case with several of Hitchcock's films, he collaborated with his wife Alma Reville on the script. The plot of Hitchcock's film differs considerably from White's novel. In The Wheel Spins , Miss Froy really is an innocent old lady looking forward to seeing her octogenarian parents; she is abducted because she knows something (without realizing its significance) that would cause trouble for

3654-534: The train. After her fellow passengers deny ever having seen the elderly lady, the young woman is helped by a young musicologist, the two proceeding to search the train for clues to the old lady's disappearance. The Lady Vanishes was filmed at the Gainsborough Studios in Islington, London . Hitchcock caught Hollywood's attention with the film and moved to Hollywood soon after its release. Although

3717-505: Was "well-served" by 1960s and 70s film adaptations like The Alphabet Murders (1965), Murder on the Orient Express (1974), and Death on the Nile (1978), the decades following it left mystery adaptations to be made for television as the "default home of sumptuous Golden Age adaptations" Eric Sandberg ( Crime Fiction Studies ) stated that while film streaming services were predominantly dominated by iterations of Nordic noir and police procedurals , there have been works inspired

3780-450: Was appointed Foreign Secretary on 5th July 2024 following the 2024 general election . The FCDO is managed day-to-day by a civil servant , the permanent under-secretary of state for foreign affairs , who also acts as the Head of His Majesty's Diplomatic Service . Sir Philip Barton took office as permanent under-secretary on 2 September 2020. The expenditure, administration and policy of

3843-687: Was formed in March 1782 by combining the Southern and Northern Departments of the Secretary of State, each of which covered both foreign and domestic affairs in their parts of the Kingdom. The two departments' foreign affairs responsibilities became the Foreign Office, whilst their domestic affairs responsibilities were assigned to the Home Office. The Home Office is technically the senior. During

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3906-781: Was formed on 17 October 1968, from the merger of the short-lived Commonwealth Office and the Foreign Office . The Commonwealth Office had been created only in 1966, by the merger of the Commonwealth Relations Office and the Colonial Office , the Commonwealth Relations Office having been formed by the merger of the Dominions Office and the India Office in 1947—with the Dominions Office having been split from

3969-408: Was struck on the head. Now concerned about potential scandal, Todhunter's mistress says Madame Kummer was the woman she saw. Waiting in the corridor while one of the cooks tosses trash out the window, Gilbert sees a wrapper from Miss Froy's personal tea package, which briefly sticks to a window, convincing him of her existence. While continuing their search, Iris and Gilbert find Miss Froy's glasses in

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