Fans of the double entendre and saucy seaside postcard humour are sure to be excited by news of a likely renaissance for the “Carry On” films. Last seen in the hugely disappointing “Carry On Columbus” instalment in 1992, it seems that a new production is set to be released in 2017. But what can we expect from a modern-day revival of the comedy series that proved popular in the sixties and seventies?
Plans in place for “Carry On Again”
After a string of aborted attempts stretching back for over a decade, Film producers seem confident that this time their plans will come to fruition.
They even have a (fitting) working title of “Carry On Again” and plans for the new script to be ready by April 2016. The following month should see shooting start at the James Bond-famed Pinewood Studios, which has also been the spiritual home for the pun-filled British film series down the years.
Original cast mainly no longer alive
The re-invention of the “Carry On” brand in the 21st century will not be a simple task. Although the type of end of the pier seaside fun still has some place in modern society it may not have the broad appeal it once enjoyed, especially with the likes of Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Joan Sims and Hattie Jacques long since departed. Very few of the original stalwarts are still alive, with the likes of Barbara Windsor and Jim Dale the notable exceptions.
Financial backing secured
This time around they are believed to have secured the services of the noted composer John Altman to write the score, with finance available from an international group with experience of investment in the film industry. As a gesture of approval from the heydays of the genre, additional (non-financial) backing has also been provided by Sid James’ son Steve for the new venture.
Audience to be tempted back
The Managing director for Carry On Films, Nigel Gordon-Stewart seemed genuinely confident when he affirmed: “I am 100 per cent sure this will work.” He is clearly hopeful that there is still an audience interested in such material, who would enjoy a nostalgic step back to an earlier time when society was far more lenient around smut and sexual stereotypes than they typically are today.
Heydey forty years ago
“Carry On” films date back to the late 1950s and continued into the latter stages of the 1970s, typically being run on a low-budget with a quick turnaround. A cast of familiar faces developed that typically featured in the productions in the early days, beginning with “Carry On Sergeant” and lasting through many of the thirty-one instalments that have so far been made.
Time will tell if the fans’ hopes are to be dashed yet again and whether both the yet to be completed script and potential cast to be assembled are up to the task. Always assuming that the plans advance beyond the drawing board this time. Laughter is still an essential commodity of course, the secret is how to tickle people’s fancy in an acceptable manner, as the former cast members may have suggested!
