What a Crazy World (1963)

“Dad’s gone down the dog track, muvver’s playing bingo,
Granny’s boozin’ up the corner, you wanna see the gin go,
No one seems to notice me, isn’t it a sin?
What a crazy world we’re living in!”

This British musical comedy from 1963 was essentially a hastily put-together showcase for pop stars of the time, Joe Brown, Marty Wilde and Susan Maughan.

Joe Brown bubbles over with Cockney bounce and gusto as unemployed East End lad Alf Hitchens who has an on-off relationship with his girlfriend Marilyn (Susan Maughan).

Nobody cares much about Alf, except his father (Harry H Corbett), who occasionally cuts up rough because Alf is content to draw his dole every week without making any effort to get a job.

At night, when Alf’s dad is concentrating on the progress of the electric hare, and his mum (Avis Bunnage) is concentrating on the voice of the bingo caller, his sister (Grazina Frame) is taking advantage of their absence to entertain a young man in their living room.

Al is also out every night. He’s knocking about with his disreputable pals.

Marty Wilde steals the show as roughneck Herbie Shadbolt, the layabout leader of the gang who takes a perverse delight in getting into scraps.

In the course of the film, we see him and Alf in a punch-up in a dance hall, a fight in a fish and chip shop, and an argument in an amusement arcade.

Marilyn strongly disapproves of Alf’s association with Herbie and is hellbent on changing his wayward behaviour, getting him working for a living, and changing her surname to his.

Almost by accident, Alf writes the words of a tune and composes the music on his banjo. He dreams of a quick acceptance by the pop music world, but instead of finding publishers ready to dangle contracts before him, he finds their doors slammed in his face. But he is not daunted and – fair means having failed – he resorts to foul deeds.

Filmed in black and white, it mixes together a bit of everything that was popular during the early 1960s, from kitchen-sink social drama to musical numbers, dance scenes, and street gang culture (and even a bit of racial stereotyping in the labour exchange-based musical number A Lay-About’s Lament).

The depiction of working-class life is as accurate as any kitchen sink drama from the period and the musical segments are great fun, particularly the highlight where the hilarious Freddie and the Dreamers turn up for a nightclub act and indulge in their trouser-losing routine onstage.

Michael Ripper appears in a number of cameo roles, complaining about the “bleeding kids”.

Of the sixteen musical numbers in the film, Joe Brown sings seven, some with backing from his famous Bruvvers. Three other numbers come from Freddie and the Dreamers, while one of the outstanding musical numbers is The Things We Never ‘ad , a duet in which Avis Bunnage and Harry H Corbett compare their own lot as youngsters with the greater freedom enjoyed by modern youth.

Those who like to watch vintage movies to see the locations will be extremely well-served by What a Crazy World as most of it was shot on location in London streets, so if you know the area you can spot where bits were set, and if not you can soak up as authentic an atmosphere as you can get.

Joey Hitchens
Michael Goodman
Alf Hitchens
Joe Brown
Marilyn Bishop
Susan Maughan
Doris Hitchens
Grazina Frame
Herbie Shadbolt
Marty Wilde
Lil
Lesley Duncan
Lenny
David Nott
Dave
Barry Bethel
Jervis
Alan Klein
Sam Hitchens
Harry H. Corbett
Mary Hitchens
Avis Bunnage
The Common Man
Michael Ripper
Chas
Larry Dann
Harry
Brian Cronin
Secretary 
Tracy Rogers
Dolly
Fanny Carby
Solly Gold
Monte Landis
Elsie
Christine Martin
Horror
Denise Coffey
Freddy 
Peter Birrell
George
Harry Locke
Percy
Michael Robbins
Freddie & The Dreamers
Themselves
The Bruvvers
Themselves
The Happy Wanderers
Themselves

Director
Michael Carreras

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