A Touch Of The Sun. Bill Darling (Frankie Howerd)
A Touch Of The Sun

A Touch Of The Sun (1956)

  • 1956 film

Comedy about a day-dreaming hotel porter who inherits £10,000. Stars Frankie Howerd, Ruby Murray, Dennis Price, Dorothy Bromley, Katherine Kath and more.

  • Repeated Tuesday 26th March at 12:40pm on TPTV

Key details

Genre
Film
Released
1956
Stars
Frankie Howerd, Ruby Murray, Dennis Price, Dorothy Bromley, Katherine Kath, Gordon Harker, Reginald Beckwith, Pierre Dudan and more
Writer
Alfred Shaughnessy
Director
Gordon Parry
Producer
Raymond Stross
Company

Hotel porter Bill Darling loves his job, and does it well. So well, in fact, that his employers - London's Royal Connought - have had him sign a contract saying he cannot resign but only be fired, such is his importance to the running of the business.

Bill, however, is unaware of this snag until a former, elderly and wealthy resident of the establishment dies, bequeathing him the princely sum of £10,000 in her will. Long dreaming of escaping to the warm climes of the south of France from wet 1950s London, Darling attempts to hand in his notice and is outraged when the manager points out that he cannot.

Having more than a few tricks up his sleeve, Bill isn't about to go - or rather, stay - quietly. Instead he sets about doing his job as badly as possible, and within a matter of days is given his cards and swiftly leaves for sunny Cannes. Unfortunately for Bill, he finds himself quickly disillusioned with the supposedly idyllic resort. Both too busy to properly relax and too dull to keep him interested, a series of sporting mishaps seal the deal: he's heading back to rainy, exciting London.

The Royal Connought, alas, has fared even worse than Bill's ambitions of a retirement in the sun: when he returns from his stint in France, he finds the doors shut and only old Sid in the building, now acting as caretaker whilst a buyer for the premises is sought. It seems that porter Darling was even more integral to the successful running of the company than any had imagined!

Equally shocked and outraged, Bill seeks out his old chums with a plan. He's not spent all of the inheritance, and there's just about enough left to buy the hotel's lease - now all they must do is convince a trio of northern investors to back them with the last of the funds they require.

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Additional details

UK certificate
U
Duration
81 minutes
UK release
October 1956
Produced
1956
Distributors

Eros Films

Production
Studio
Camera set-up
Single camera
Picture
Black and white

Website links

Broadcast details

Next repeats
  1. Tuesday 26th March at 12:40pm on TPTV
Most recent repeats
  • Sunday 19th November 2023 at 7:05am on TPTV
  • Thursday 29th June 2023 at 12:50pm on TPTV
  • Monday 20th February 2023 at 6:30am on TPTV

Recording details

  • Nettlefold Studios