British Film Comedy: The 70s DVD (2018) Richard Beckinsale, Wise (DIR) cert 12 Title: British Film Comedy: The 70s Leading Actor: Richard Beckinsale Region: Region 2 Duration: 349 mins Format: DVD / Box Set Type: DVD No. of Discs: 4 disc(s) Studio / Publisher: Fremantle UK Release Date: 29 Oct 2018 Edition: Box Set Collection of 1970s British comedies. ‘The Best of Benny Hill’ (1974) contains clips and highlights from Benny Hill’s television series’, from 1969 to 1972. In ‘The Lovers!’ (1973) the primary area of conflict between Geoffrey Scrimshaw (Richard Beckinsale) and Beryl Battersby (Paula Wilcox) regards sex, which Geoffrey is keen to try and Beryl, who has been brought up with strict, old-fashioned values, recoils from. Geoffrey is eager to point out that they’re living in the 1970s, a more permissive age, but will this convince Beryl - who refers to the act as ‘Percy Filth’ - to submit to his desires? In ‘Sunstruck’ (1972) the break-up of a long-term relationship is the trigger that encourages Welsh teacher Stanley Evans (Harry Secombe) to leave his homeland. Upon arrival in the small town of Kookaburra Springs, Australia, he has cause to doubt his decision as the surroundings prove markedly less glamorous than expected and the kids he teaches at the local school are somewhat hostile. However, recalling happier days as choirmaster at a small Welsh school, Stanley quickly finds a way to bond with his students through music. Finally, in ‘The House in Nightmare Park’ (1973), when struggling actor Foster Twelvetrees (Frankie Howerd) is invited to perform a reading at the country mansion of a rich family that includes Stewart (Ray Milland), Jessica (Rosalie Crutchley) and Reggie (Hugh Burden) he can barely believe his luck. However, when Foster’s performance of a tragedy coincides with the piling up of dead bodies that is normally restricted to the stage, he begins to wonder what he has let himself in for.
