John and Roy Boulting
John and Roy Boulting were
English film-makers, who became known for their popular series of satirical comedies in the
1950s and
1960s.
The twin brothers were born in
Bray, Berkshire,
England on
November 21 1913. They worked together as producer and director whenever they could, and often alternated these duties depending on the nature of the film they were working on, although they also made films separately. The two worked as screenwriters on their own films.
They began with serious, tight, economical drama films such as
Seven Days to Noon (1950) and
Graham Greene's
Brighton Rock (1947) (both with producer: Roy, director: John). They then became known for a series of satirical comedy films which are considered British classics today, such as
Private's Progress (
1956),
Lucky Jim (
1957) and
I'm All Right Jack (
1959), all with the same credits as above, and usually with John as co-writer. The comedies often starred
Ian Carmichael as the lead, along with
Richard Attenborough and
Terry-Thomas; and often
Dennis Price,
John Le Mesurier,
Irene Handl and
Miles Malleson.
I'm All Right Jack also starred
Peter Sellers and boosted his film career, winning him a
BAFTA Best Actor Award. He also appeared in other Boulting brothers films later.
The Family Way (1966) was a slightly controversial film about a young married couple and their down-to-earth family.
Roy Boulting did some work in British TV in the eighties including directing one of the popular
BBC Miss Marple mysteries. He married
Hayley Mills, whom he met on the set of
The Family Way, in 1971. They divorced in 1977.
John died in
1985 and Roy on
November 5,
2001. Their elder brother
Sydney Boulting, became an
actor and
stage producer as
Peter Cotes.
John
Journey Together (
1945)
Brighton Rock (
1947)
Seven Days to Noon (
1950)
The Magic Box (
1951)
Private's Progress (
1956)
Lucky Jim (
1957)
Heavens Above! (
1963)
Rotten to the Core (
1965)
The Number (
1979)
Roy
Inquest (
1940)
Thunder Rock (
1942)
Tunisian Victory (
1944, documentary co-directed with
Frank Capra)
Fame is the Spur (
1947)
The Guinea Pig (
1948)
Singlehanded (
1951)
Seagulls Over Sorrento (
1954)
Josephine and Men (
1955)
Run for the Sun (
1956)
Happy is the Bride (
1957)
Brothers in Law (
1957)
I'm All Right Jack (
1959)
Carlton-Browne of the F.O. (
1959)
Suspect (
1960)
A French Mistress (
1960)
The Family Way (
1966)
Twisted Nerve (
1968)
There's a Girl in My Soup (
1970)
Soft Beds, Hard Battles (
1973)
*Burton Alan, O'Sullivan Tim, Wells Paul; Eds. 2000. The Family Way: The Boulting Brothers and British Film Culture. Trowbridge: Flicks Books. ISBN 0-948911-59X
*
Boulting Brothers Stills & Posters Gallery**from the
British Film Institute, (gallery navigation is on the left).
