Spring in Park Lane

Richard talks with Uncle Joshua about Somerset Maugham's story, 'The Moon and Sixpence', loosely based on Paul Gauguin's life.

Richard mentions the film based on the novel, but mistakenly identifies 'Tyrone Power' (qv) as the star.

What an accomplished team Anna Neagle and Michael Widing were.They must have known each others acting styles intimately.

There was William Powell as Godfrey; Brian Aherne in "Merrily We Live", and recently reviewed by me, Dan Duryea in "White Tie and Tails". For this very popular British film (one of the biggest hits in their cinema history), it's pretty obvious that footman Michael Wilding is something that he is pretending not to be in this British drawing room comedy starring the enchanting Anna Neagle who is the secretary to her wealthy uncle and finds herself entrenched by the cheeky Wilding.

"What did you say, Richard?" "What did you say?

This is one of my favourite movies of its type. I first saw it when it first appeared (sixty years ago), and I have seen it several times in recent years.

This was the most popular movie in Great Britain the year it was released and still holds the record for most tickets sold in Britain by an all-British production. It was so popular that a poll the following year had Miss Neagle the most popular movie star in Britain: the first time in more than a decade the title went to a British subject.

According to IMDB and TCM, "Spring in Park Lane" made more money than any other British film the year it debuted. In fact, it apparently is one of the highest attended pictures ever in the UK...

A British romantic comedy; A story about a nobleman who hides from his relatives by working as footman in a Mayfair house, and falls in love with the niece of the owner, a wealthy diamond merchant and art collector.