Quiet Weekend (1946)
6/10
The Fuhrer had nothing on Mildred Royd
7 June 2012
Before seeing this 1946 film I recommend the viewer sees the earlier 1941 film "Quiet Wedding" which was also based on a stage play by Esther McCracken.The latter film introduced the basic characters of the Royd family but there are some glaring anomalies.First the two films/plays are not sequential and some of the characters in "Quiet Wedding" are not present in "Quiet Weekend".Principally I missed not seeing Margaret Lockwood again as Janet Royd, I suppose in 1946 (the year of my birth) she was busy elsewhere filming "Bedelia".Instead of a young Muriel Pavlow, we have Barbara White playing the impish Miranda Bute who is the cousin of Denys Royd (Derek Farr) and on whom she has a girlish crush.This time Miranda tries to sabotage Denys' romance with Rowena (Helen Shingler) whose character seems to gradually evaporate as the film develops.

Another reviewer made the point about the large number of orders given by Mildred Royd (Marjorie Fielding) to all and sundry, no wonder the Fuhrer did not stand a chance when up against British women like this during the war!!Another actress Josephine Wilson (who played Mary Jarrow) eventually becomes engaged to Adrian Barrasford played by Frank Cellier, appeared to be the mysterious Madame Kumar from Hitchcock's "The Lady Vanishes" (1938) who posed as a replacement to "The Lady" played by Dame May Witty.Interestingly, Frank Cellier played Derek Farr's father in the earlier film.Finally the actor Ballard Berkeley ("The Major" in "Fawlty Towers") makes an earlier appearance here playing "Jim Brent".

I laughingly agreed with the user comments above about the very stagy, comic way of 1930s speaking and pronouncement of words in that "I say anyone for tennis?" way of speaking.As I said in "Quiet Wedding" it is all rather endearing now.I rated this film 6/10 and admit to giving "Quiet Weekend" a lesser rating since I am a Margaret Lockwood fan, I missed seeing her in this almost sequel.
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