The little man who scored such a success in his first film, Trouble In Store (1953), was back again to cheer us all up. This time, Norman is the oldest orphan at Greenwood Children’s Home and now acts as their caretaker and odd-job man.
But there are dirty deeds afoot, and the chairman of the board is also a property developer who is looking to make a fortune out of the children’s home by selling it to make room for a new factory.
In an attempt to raise some money (£12) to buy a model motor car as a present for Jimmy (Keith Gilman), one of the orphans at the home, Norman tries his hand at various jobs – carrying sandwich boards, boxing (“Three rounds and win ten pounds”), motor racing, competing in the London to Brighton walking race, even conducting an orchestra.
There is a romantic angle, too, for Norman is in love with schoolmistress Iris (Joan Rice), who, in turn, is in love with someone else, while Mary (Australian zither player Shirley Abicair) is in love with Norman.
Good clean fun with plenty of genuinely funny slapstick from a time now long gone. Norman works so hard it’s impossible not to like him.
Norman
Norman Wisdom Iris
Joan Rice Mary
Shirley Abicair Cook
Thora Hird Alec Bigley
William Russell Matron Sparrow
Joan Ingram Bigley
Richard Caldicot Professor Dofee
David Hurst Igor Petrovitch
Harold Kasket Gunner Mac
Ricky McCullough Martin
Anthony Green Jimmy
Keith Gilman Tuppenny
Marjorie Fender Boxer
Arthur Mullard
Director
John Paddy Carstairs
You May Also Like
Mr. Horatio Knibbles (1971) This fantasy film from the Children's Film Foundation introduces young Mary Bunting (Lesley Roach), who is…
That Riviera Touch (1966) This terrific sixties comedy starring legendary British comedy duo, Morecambe and Wise begins when traffic wardens…
John of the Fair (1952) The first batch of releases for 1952 from The Children's Film Foundation (CFF) included four short…
Gourmet, The (1987) This intriguing and unsettling 47-minute made-for-television movie was produced by Skreba Productions for Channel 4, based…
Miracle in Soho (1957) The story of the inhabitants of St Anthony's Lane, a small street in London's cosmopolitan Soho,…
Bartleby (1970) Bartleby (John McEnery) is a likeable yet unusual young man - painfully polite and good-natured -…
Father, Dear Father (1973) Based on the successful Thames Television series of the same name, this spin-off film is a…
Charge Of The Light Brigade, The (1968) Tony Richardson's disapproving rendition of the infamously disastrous Crimean War cavalry charge in 1854 disappointed many…
Norman
Bigley
