Carry On Girls (1973)

Sidney James triumphs in the part of a lusty town councillor in the dull seaside town of Fircombe. Barbara Windsor shows us her assets, Bernard Bresslaw is in drag (again), Kenneth Connor excels in his role of the bumbling Mayor and Jack Douglas twitches his way through the entire film. What's not to like? The lazy, dowdy Mayor's wife is Patsy Rowlands's best part in the series and June Whitfield's performance is sublime. Definitely a one to watch.

Carry On Girls (1973) was the 25th entry in this staggeringly long-running British comedy film series. Many don't seem to hold 'Girls' in much regard, but I really like it. The Carry On's were beginning to slide in popularity at this stage; whereas at one stage at least two or three Carry On films were made per year, by 1973 the production rate had slowed down to just once a year.Charles Hawtrey (who had been disposed of after his drunken antics on the Carry On Abroad set and after continual disagreements with producer Peter Rogers over wanting his name elevated above the title which no Carry On star was ever rewarded), Kenneth Williams and the formidable Hattie Jacques are all sorely missed, but there is surprisingly enough fun, laughter and games to enjoy throughout.In 'Carry On Girls', the typically thin plot is centered around a tacky, end-of-pier beauty contest which immediately faces opposition from the town's women's lib action group, led by Councillor Prodworthy, played marvelously by June Whitfield. Sid James organises the contest and lets the girls (which includes Margaret Noland and Wendy Richard) stay at the hotel run by his girlfriend, Chloe (Joan Sims) for free! Sid's eye soon strays onto the bubbly Barbara Windsor whom arrives on a motorbike in complete tomboy mode, yet reveals a far more glamorous, feminine side when taking part in the first promotional photo shoot.The film's climax is where it really scores best with the beauty contest ending in complete disaster. The girls costumes are all laced with itching powder, the floor is made slippery leading the contestants to tumble down on to the stage and to top if off Councillor Prodworthy turns on the sprinklers that soaks the entire audience. This is followed by a fun go-kart chase as Sid James flees all of the enraged customers who all demanding their money back after having been soaked in the theatre. Barbara Windsor is hot on Sid's trail on a motorbike. The last scene sees Sid James and Barbara Windsor riding merrily along a motorway on Barbara's scooter. Silly but great fun.The cast are all on top form, though any scene which Sid James and Barbara Windsor share raises a smile and a laugh with their undeniable chemistry shining through. This is really Sid and Babs film.Yet again, Joan Sims is underused and unfairly pigeon holed into a supporting performance which she plays straight and efficiently, where as Kenneth Connor plays the town's bumbling Mayor, a blatantly incompetent and pompous figure whom causes some amusement though is mainly the butt of a joke. Playing opposite Connor, and inadvertently stealing any scene she's in, is Patsy Rolands, whom has a far meatier part in this Carry On and comes into her own. She plays the Mayor's frustrated and down-trodden wife to utter comic perfection and her character rebels in the end joining forces with June Whitfield's team of women's lib group.Lovable giant, Bernard Bresslaw pops up as Sid James sidekick in organising the beauty contest. The scenes where he dresses in drag, deliberately to attract attention from the media in a bid to drum up publicity and generate interest in the contest, are quite hilarious! The sultry Valerie Leon plays his dowdy fiancé who reluctantly ends up joining the beauty contest in the end and is transformed into the glamorous and stunning beauty she always truly was/is. For some odd reason, however, all of Valerie Leon's lines are dubbed over by June Whitfield! Bizarre! Then there's Jack Douglas bubbling away in the background as the hotel porter, William. His nervous twitching is something of an acquired taste, and while Douglas is clearly a talented performer who fit in nicely in the 70s Carry On's, it can become tedious and just annoying at points.All told, I definitely consider 'Carry On Girls' a classic entry in the series and a highly enjoyable one at that.

By the early seventies the Carry On films had lost their innocent charm and instead aimed for the sauciness of McGill's famous postcards. Here that sauciness is provided by a beauty contest arranged by Sidney Fiddler, councillor in the seaside resort of Fircombe. The idea of a beauty contest isn't approved of by everybody though councillor and women's libber Augusta Prodworthy strongly objects to such sexist activities in the town. In order to make the contest a financial success Sid invites the contestants and publicity agent Peter Potter to come down a week before, staying free at his fiancée's hotel. Of course it isn't long before they are getting the sort of publicity money can't buy as a fight between contestants Hope Springs and the ample chested Dawn Brakes leaves the mayor with his trousers round his ankles! That is just the first thing to hit the front pages; the mayor is once again left trouserless in an incident involving a fire engine and Peter Potter is persuaded to disguise himself as a women to enter the contest! The arrival of so many beautiful young women has an effect on the hotel's regular clientèle; some of whom decide to leave and others such as the Admiral who can't get enough of them! As the film reaches its conclusion the contest begins to open when the protesters strike.I must admit that I didn't have high hopes of this when I sat down to watch it, mainly watching it for completeness; perhaps because of that I rather enjoyed it. Sid James gave his standard performance as Sydney Fiddler which was just what the role demanded, Joan Sims did a fine job playing it straight as Sid's Fiancée and Peter Breslaw was good as Peter Potter. I was less sure of Barbara Windsor though; her sense of fun and mischievous laugh are always charming but she didn't really have the necessary beauty queen look. Kenneth Connor's performance as the mayor had its moments but for the most part he was out performed by Patsy Rowlands who played his put upon wife. To my mind however the worst character was William, the hotel receptionist played by Jack Douglas; a one joke character who will only amuse those who find speech problems and physical impediments funny. While not employed for their acting talents the contests were suitably attractive; especially Margaret Nolan who had difficulties keeping her top covered as Dawn Brakes! I admit the humour is fairly puerile but it made me laugh far more than I expected and in the end that is what makes a comedy; I'd certainly recommend this to fans of the series but be warned some parents might think there is too much flesh on display and too much innuendo despite its PG certificate.

The Carry On series does have worse entries such as England, Emanuelle and Columbus, but with Screaming, Cleo and Up the Khyber the series has better too. Carry on Girls doesn't fit in either best or worst categories, instead it is content with a spot in the low-ish middle category. While the costumes and sets are good, the editing isn't particularly, some scenes look as though they have been edited on a bacon slicer. The story is also rather unfocused with an attempt to combine gentle social satire and smut and sauciness, and it keeps jumping to and fro with uneven results. Also I did miss Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey. However, the direction isn't too bad, neither is the music, while Talbot Rothwell's script is fluid and has some good moments that make up for the uneven focus in story. And the cast do give it their all, Sid James and June Witfield are a lively pair of adversaries and Kenneth Connor, Joan Sims and Patsy Rowlands are splendid as well. Overall, a very uneven film but not one without its moments. 6/10 Bethany Cox