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Fun at St. Fanny's

1955

Gormless 25 year-old Cardew, wealthy beneficiary of the Robinson Will, should have left St. Fanny's School many years ago. However, seedy headmaster Dr. Jankers (music hall favourite Fred Emney) is in the toils of shady bookmaker Harry the Scar (boxer Freddie Mills) and has so-far kept his golden goose perched firmly at the bottom of the class. Blissfully unaware of nefarious intrigue around him, Cardew continues to flirt coyly with the French mistress and gamble for school dinners on the form room roulette wheel. But canny Scots solicitor McTavish has been sent to investigate... Featuring television's Billy Bunter, Gerald Campion, gorgeous Vera Day, Will Hay cohort Claude Hulbert, muddle-mouthed Stanley Unwin, a young Ronnie Corbett, and enough old jokes to fill a Christmas Cracker factory.

Fred Emney Cardew Robinson Miriam Karlin Gabrielle Brune Vera Day Aud Johansen Claude Hulbert Freddie Mills Davy Kaye Johnny Brandon Ronnie Corbett Roger Avon Stanley Unwin Peter Butterworth Paul Daneman Kynaston Reeves Gerald Campion Dino Galvani Stuart Saunders Tom Gill Melvyn Hayes

Country

Language

English

Genre

Comedy

Theatrical

15 Dec 1955

UK

15 Dec 1955

Theatrical

80 mins More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Paul D ★½

This school-based farce features the laziest comedy of all, not situation based, not even tits and bums, it's just 80 minutes of characters feeding one another set-ups for one-liners and awful puns.
The story, such as it is, features Cardew Robinson as the eternal schoolboy who has been stuck at St. Fanny's for 16 years without passing his exams in order that the Headmaster (Fred Emney) can keep his school fees rolling in.
Those of you familiar with British comedy from this era will no doubt be able to make an educated guess as to some of Cardew's classmates. Ronnie Corbett and Melvyn Hayes, both employed because of their height, and Gerald Campion who played Billy Bunter up until he was 40 and is pretty much the same character here.
Emney raised the odd titter, but other than that it's a laughter-free zone.
Review by gibson8 ½

A remarkable relic of British comedy. Like watching an excruciating Edinburgh fringe show with over eager public school types. Overjoyed at displaying their dubious talents whilst being led by the freakishly grating Carthew Robinson. No fun, no fannies and no saints.
Review by Cnechamkin1 ★★½

Fun indeed! This is full of crude slapstick, hoary puns, and crass innuendos—in other words, it's right up my alley. The film was built around Cardew Robinson's popular stage act ("Cardew the Cad"), but I found my attention waning whenever he appeared on screen. Robinson is surrounded by a cast of braying schoolboys, an amorous matron, a beleaguered professor, and a shapely French instructor, all of whom add to the film's chaotic atmosphere.
Fred Emney is delightful as Dr. Septimus Jankers, the school's boozing headmaster and a degenerate gambler. Emney has some nice gags, including a bit of funny business at the piano, a dizzying dance sequence, and an appearance in drag. As more characters enter the picture, the plot becomes a little unwieldy and there's an overabundance of musical numbers—including, inexplicably, the Rosemary Clooney song "Mambo Italiano".

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Fun at St. Fanny's

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Theatrical

15 Dec 1955

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15 Dec 1955

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Fun at St. Fanny's

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15 Dec 1955

UK

15 Dec 1955

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