Brian Rix was well known for his farces but as a child I only really knew him for his adult literacy shows on television and for his work for the mentally disabled for which he received a peerage.
Here is a rare chance to catch him doing his comedy. He plays Hollebone, a dimwitted cabin steward along with the more crafty Higgins (Ronald Shiner) who has obtaining tips from the cruise passengers into an art form.
When wealthy guest Mrs Borough enters the ship with a valuable diamond jewellery she attracts unwanted attention and it is left to Hollebone and Higgins to catch the culprits.
Shiner excels as the scheming Higgins, always on the look out for a large tip but he is also wily enough to figure out that two of the guests are up to no good and feels sorry for the newlyweds who he realises were not as well to do as expected.
The film actually zips along nicely, there is a fair amount of slapstick and is not over long. It is a nice example of 1950s British comedy, not high brow but amiable.
