White Corridors
| White Corridors | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Pat Jackson |
| Based on | novel Yeoman's Hospital by Helen Ashton |
| Produced by | Joseph Janni John Croydon |
| Starring | Googie Withers |
| Cinematography | C. M. Pennington-Richards |
| Edited by | Sidney Hayers |
Production company | Vic Films Productions |
| Distributed by | General Film Distributors (UK) |
Release date | 12 June 1951 (London)(UK) |
Running time | 102 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
White Corridors is a 1951 British drama film directed by Pat Jackson and starring Googie Withers, Godfrey Tearle, James Donald and Petula Clark.[1] It is based on the 1944 novel Yeoman's Hospital by Helen Ashton.
The film is set in a hospital shortly after the establishment of the National Health Service.[2]
Plot[edit]
The day-to-day life of the staff and patients at a city hospital.[3] The central story is that of doctors Sophie Dean and Neil Marriner, who are in love, and their fight to save the life of Tommy Briggs, a little boy with blood poisoning.
Cast[edit]
- Googie Withers as Dr. Sophie Dean
- James Donald as Dr. Neil Marriner
- Brand Inglis as Tommy Briggs
- Godfrey Tearle as Mr. Groom, Sr.
- Petula Clark as Joan Shepherd
- Jean Anderson as Sister Gater
- Timothy Bateson as Dr. Cook
- Fabia Drake as Miss Farmer
- Henry Edwards as Phillip Brewster
- Gerard Heinz as Dr. Macuzek
- Megs Jenkins as Mrs. Briggs
- Barry Jones as Dr. Shoesmith
- Avice Landone as Sister Jenkins
- Bernard Lee as Burgess
- Moira Lister as Dolly Clark
- Dandy Nichols as char
- Basil Radford as retired civil servant
- Bruce Seton as policeman
- Mary Hinton as matron
- Patrick Troughton as sailor
- Jack Watling as Dick Groom
- Philip Stainton as Sawyer
- Dana Wynter as Margery Brewster [uncredited]
- Deidre Doyle as woman patient [uncredited]
- Mignon O'Doherty as irrascible woman [uncredited]
- Humphrey Howorth as Chandler [uncredited]
Production[edit]
The film marked Googie Withers's return to acting after 13 months off following the birth of her child.[4] John Mills at one stage was announced to play the male lead.[5]
Bombardier Billy Wells, the man who bangs the gong on the Rank trademark, had a small role.[6]
Pat Jackson claims making the film was "a joy" and says it was shot in five weeks.[7]
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
White Corridors was the 8th most popular film at the British box office in 1951.[8][9]
Critical[edit]
The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "The material of White Corridors is not distinguished, and its episodic structure emphasises that the characterisation is mainly one-dimensional; the interweaving of a series of glimpsed characters needed a firmer conception if real depth were to be given to them and thus to the whole background of the hospital which the film sets out to explore. But on a surface level the film is remarkably successful, due to the persuasive talents of its director, Pat Jackson."[10]
The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 3/5 stars, writing: "While it may sound like a hokey soap opera, it is actually a well-made British A-feature, realistically played by a large and excellent cast that includes a number of well-known faces."[11]
Leslie Halliwell said: "Competent multi-drama which found a big audience."[12]
In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "very good", writing: "Intelligently handled, episodic medical drama always carries energy at its core."[13]
Accolades[edit]
At the 1951 BAFTAS it was nominated for Best Film and Best British Film.[14] Petula Clark was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.
References[edit]
- ^ "White Corridors". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "White Corridors". IMDb. October 1951.
- ^ "WHITE CORRIDORS". The Australian Women's Weekly. National Library of Australia. 15 October 1952. p. 52. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ^ "EMPHASIS ON GLAMOR AT ROYAL FILM SHOW". The Mirror. Perth: National Library of Australia. 18 November 1950. p. 15. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ^ "Gossip From The Studios". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 23 November 1950. p. 17. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ^ "NOTES ON FILMS". The Sunday Herald. Sydney: National Library of Australia. 28 January 1951. p. 4 Supplement: Features. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ^ "Pat Jackson interview" (PDF). British Entertainment History Project. 22 March 1991.
- ^ "Vivien Leigh Actress of the Year". Townsville Daily Bulletin. Qld.: National Library of Australia. 29 December 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
- ^ Thumim, Janet. "The popular cash and culture in the postwar British cinema industry". Screen. Vol. 32, no. 3. p. 258.
- ^ "White Corridors". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 18 (204): 294. 1 January 1951 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 1020. ISBN 9780992936440.
- ^ Halliwell, Leslie (1989). Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 1110. ISBN 0586088946.
- ^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 399. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.
- ^ BFI.org
External links[edit]
- White Corridors at IMDb
- White Corridors then-and-now location photographs at ReelStreets
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