News

Fielding, whose career spanned seven decades, appeared in Carry On Regardless and Carry On Screaming!

The former Carry On actor, Fenella Fielding, has died aged 90, her spokeswoman has said. The star, who enjoyed a showbusiness career spanning seven decades, suffered a stroke two weeks ago and died on Tuesday.

She appeared in two Carry On films – Carry On Regardless in 1961 and Carry On Screaming! in 1966 – and was awarded an OBE in the 2018 Queen’s birthday honours list.

Stage and screen actor best known for her roles in the Carry On films and as Cynthia Kite in the 1959 classic I’m All Right Jack

The actor Liz Fraser, who has died aged 88, specialised in comedy in a career that stretched from cough and spit parts in 1950s Ealing Studios films to a guest star suspect in the latest series of Midsomer Murders (2018). She also worked with Tony Hancock and Sid James, and starred in the classic I’m All Right Jack (1959) with Peter Sellers, but her long and varied career was almost inevitably overshadowed by her membership of the Carry On team.

The slap and tickle British film institution of innuendo and pratfall, awash with music hall one-liners, Carry On celebrates its 60th anniversary this year and remains as popular as ever, a reassuring never-never land of off-colourjokes, whose occasional sexism, racism and homophobia is somehow muted by...

In the 1950s, independent film was just as keen to stick its nose in the atomic blender as the Hollywood big boys. Of course, budget restrictions frequently left most of the monsters wanting, be they big or small. But sometimes a shot of quirk was enough to stand apart from the Tinseltown terrors. I give you Fiend Without a Face (1958), a low budget romp content with showing less until it has to show it all, with giddy results.

Produced by British company Amalgamated Productions and distributed by MGM (in the States), Fiend was sent out on a double bill with The Haunted Strangler, a Boris Karloff vehicle. With a combined budget of 130,000 pounds, the double feature brought in domestic and international receipts of over $ 650,000 dollars, filmic diplomacy at its finest.

Filmed in Britain but taking place in Winthrop (?), Manitoba, Canada (never heard of the town, and if I haven’t drank in it,...

Singer, dancer and theatrical agent who represented Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton

Bernard Hunter, who has died aged 92, was a precocious young performer, a popular singer and dancer, and, later, a theatre agent who represented many stars in Britain and the Us, including Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor and Olivia de Havilland. He continued to represent clients into his late 80s. Hunter's approachable good looks and air of a casual boulevardier seemed to attract consistent good luck.

Born in London, Hunter described his childhood in Islington as full of "maniacal happiness". Asked what his father did, he was apt to quip affectionately: "As little as possible." His father was in fact devoted to horses and the racetrack. Through gambling, he lost the money that was supposed to be for his son's education. However, at 16, Hunter won a singing competition at a local cinema. The prize was an appearance in a week's variety at the Winter Gardens,...

The ninth annual Irish Film & Television Awards took place tonight at a Gala Awards Ceremony held at the Convention Centre Dublin.

In the field of film 'The Guard' was the big winner of the night receiving the Ifta for Best Film, with writer/director John Michael McDonagh named Best Director, Best Screenwriter and the Irish Film Board Rising Star for his feature directorial debut. Fionnula Flannagan who was honoured with a lifetime achievement award also won best supporting actress for her part in 'The Guard'.

Michael Fassbender picked up best actor for 'Shame' while Saoirse Ronan picked up best actress for her role in 'Hanna.' Ryan Gosling picked up the best international actor for 'Drive,' Chris O'Dowd picked up best supporting actor for 'Bridesmaids', and Glenn Close picked up best international actress for 'Albert Nobbs.'

'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy...

Albert Nobbs and the other nominations for the 2012 Irish Film and Television Academy Awards have been announced. The 9th Annual Irish Film and Television Awards (IFTAs) “sole aim is to celebrate Ireland’s notably talented film and television community. The ceremony is considered to be one of Ireland’s most prestigious awards event, and can be viewed as the Irish equivalent to the American Oscars.” The awards ceremony will be held on February 11, 2012 at the Convention Centre Dublin (Ccd).

The full listing of the 2012 Irish Film and Television Awards is below.

Film Categories

Best Film

Albert Nobbs – Alan Moloney, Bonnie Curtis, Julie Lynn and Glenn Close (Parallel Film & TV Productions)

Charlie Casanova – Terry McMahon (Source Productions)

Stella Days – Jackie Larkin & Leslie McKimm (Newgrange Pictures)

The Guard – Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Chris Larke, Flore Fernandez Marengo(Element Pictures)

Director Film

Rebecca Daly – The Other Side of Sleep (Fastnet Films)

John Michael McDonagh...

Distinctive, durable British character actor on stage and screen

Terence Longdon, who has died of cancer aged 88, was a character actor whose parted hair and thick-set face – though not his name – were familiar for several decades. Only once did he step into the spotlight at the top of the bill, when he starred as the title character in the television series Garry Halliday (1959-62). The almost-forgotten BBC children's adventure programme, based on books by Justin Blake, perfectly fitted Longdon's educated, smooth, well-mannered persona – and a man who had flown with the Fleet Air Arm during the second world war. The actor played a Biggles-like commercial airline pilot, with Terence Alexander as his co-pilot, Bill Dodds. Posing a constant threat to the Halliday Charter Company was "The Voice", an arch-villain who sat behind a two-way mirror and shone a light into the faces of his gang members, keeping his own in darkness.

Cinematographer known for his work on the Carry On films

Despite, or because of, the ancient, dirty jokes, schoolboy humour, double entendres, and a string of hammy actors tele- graphing each jest with pursed lips, rolling eyes or a snigger, the Carry On films have an army of devotees. Among the most regular actors were Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Sid James, Joan Sims and Kenneth Connor, and behind the camera, on almost all of the 30 Carry On movies, was the cinematographer Alan Hume, who has died aged 85.

Hume started as camera operator on the very first, Carry On Sergeant (1958), soon becoming director of photography (Dp) on Carry On Regardless (1961), and continuing as Dp until Carry On Columbus (1992) ended the franchise. Though few would make any artistic claims for the films, they were competently shot, rapidly, on a shoestring. Because of the rapport Hume built up over a long period with...