This failed to get a release in British cinemas, or any London showing. As the film was seen by a few critics, who praised it highly, this was something of a scandal in 1965, especially as the one earlier feature film directed by Desmond Davis, "Girl With Green Eyes" (1964), had been extensively lauded, with Davis hailed as an exciting new directing talent. The film was made for British Lion, a company which was in a very bad way by the mid-60s, with a number of its films (e.g., "The Leather Boys", "Hide And Seek", "A Place To Go") being shelved for lengthy periods, usually about two years, before getting shown in cinemas. Although it was better-liked than almost all of theses delayed films, "The Uncle" had the worse fate of not being screened at all; it was hardly ever shown on British television, either. In the early 2020s it has been shown several times in the UK by Talking Pictures TV.
