British Comedy Guide
Too Many Crooks. Image shows from L to R: Snowdrop (Bernard Bresslaw), Sid (Sid James), Fingers (George Cole), Whisper (Joe Melia), Charmaine (Vera Day). Copyright: Rank Organisation / ITV
Too Many Crooks

Too Many Crooks

  • 1959 film

Film about a gang of crooks who bungle every robbery they attempt so decide to try their hand at kidnapping instead. Stars Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Brenda De Banzie, Bernard Bresslaw, Sid James and more.

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Too Many Crooks. Image shows from L to R: Beryl, the Secretary (Delphi Lawrence), Billy Gordon (Terry-Thomas), Fingers (George Cole). Copyright: Rank Organisation / ITV

Key details

Genre
Film
Released
1959
Stars
Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Brenda De Banzie, Bernard Bresslaw, Sid James, Vera Day, Delphi Lawrence, John Le Mesurier and more
Writers
Michael Pertwee, Christiane Rochefort and Jean Nery
Director
Mario Zampi
Producers
Mario Zampi, Earl St. John and Giulio Zampi
Company

A rag-tag gang of crooks - Fingers, Sid, Charmaine, Snowdrop and Whisper - have botched yet another job. Current leader Fingers is thoroughly incompetent, but convinces his compadres to trust him with one more plan: rob a millionaire. He's known to be distrusting of banks, if not fiddling his taxes, so it's a simple office robbery rather than a bank job to relieve him of his fortune.

Predictably, however, their plan falls apart when their target - Billy Gordon - proves to be in his office late, romancing his secretary, and manages once more to illustrate Fingers's fecklessness. But all is not lost for the quintet, as they have gained vital information about Gordon and his beloved daughter, Angela. Now they have kidnap and ransom in mind!

Descending upon the Gordon family house in the dead of night, the team successfully put their daring plot into action. Alas, having made their getaway, it is not for a number of hours that they realise they have in fact bundled out the middle-aged wife that Billy is only too happy to do without!

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Additional details

UK release
Sunday 8th March 1959
Distributors

The Rank Organisation

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

Website links

Broadcast details

Most recent repeats
  • Monday 10th June 2019 at 3:05pm on TPTV
  • Sunday 3rd March 2019 at 1:15pm on TPTV
  • Wednesday 27th February 2019 at 2:30am on TPTV

Recording details

  • Pinewood Studios

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