The Black Sheep of Whitehall

Infobox Film
name =The Black Sheep of Whitehall
director =Basil Dearden
Will Hay
producer =Michael Balcon


caption =film poster
writer =John Dighton
Angus MacPhail
starring =Will Hay
John Mills
Basil Sydney
Felix Aylmer
Thora Hird
Leslie Mitchell
released = 23 February 1942
runtime =80 min.
country = UK
language =English
imdb_id =0033398

Made in 1942, "The Black Sheep of Whitehall" is a wartime British comedy film, starring Will Hay, John Mills and Felix Aylmer.

Plot summary

When he is forced to vacate the office of his debt-ridden correspondence college, 'Professor' Will Davis (Will Hay) goes to the Ministry of International Commerce at Whitehall in order to confront his one-and-only student, PR man Bobby Jessop (John Mills). To get Davis off his back, Jessop proposes to get him a job at Whitehall. Jessop then leaves in order to fetch Professor Davys at the train station. The professor is a leading economist who has returned from a long stay in South America in order to advise the British government on a trade treaty with the South American nations, which could be crucial to Britain's war effort.

Davis is mistaken for the expert and gets involved in a series of interviews, giving answers based on gambling, con jobs, double entendres or just plain ignorance. Jessop later returns with 'Professor Davys' and the confusion is sorted out, though it has left the BBC interviewers in a state of mental collapse. Jessop then discovers that the man he brought with him is in fact Crabtree (Felix Aylmer), a member of a group of Fifth columnists working for Nazi Germany.

Jessop promises Davis a job if he will help him track down the real Professor Davys (Henry Hewitt), who is being held in a safe house by Crabtree's associates. Assuming a number of disguises, Davis and Jessop set off to foil the plot before the treaty is compromised.

Notes

Hay and Mills had worked before, most notably on "Those Were the Days" (1933).

Thora Hird features at the beginning as Will Davis' secretary, who is owed, rather than paid, to deal with the equally unpaid bills.

Real broadcaster Leslie Mitchell is driven to a nervous breakdown while interviewing Hay. Mitchell was the first commentator for the new BBC Television Service when it began transmissions on 2 November 1936. He also provided the commentary for the Movietone News.

External links

*