Carry On at Your Convenience

Carry on at Your Convenience
Original UK quad poster
Directed by	Gerald Thomas
Produced by	Peter Rogers
Written by	Talbot Rothwell
Starring	Sid James Kenneth Williams Charles Hawtrey Joan Sims Hattie Jacques Bernard Bresslaw Kenneth Cope Jacki Piper Richard O'Callaghan
Music by	Eric Rogers
Cinematography	Ernest Steward
Edited by	Alfred Roome
Distributed by	Rank Organisation
Release date	December 1971
Running time	90 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	£220,000

Carry on at Your Convenience, released in 1971, is the 22nd in the series of Carry On films to be made, and was the first box office failure of the series. This failure has been attributed to the film's attempt at exploring the political themes of the trade union movement, crucially portraying the union activists as idle, pedantic buffoons which, apparently, alienated the traditional working-class audience of the series. The film, known as Carry On Round the Bend outside the United Kingdom, did not return full production costs until 1976 after several international and television sales. The film features regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, Hattie Jacques and Bernard Bresslaw. It features Kenneth Cope in the first of his two Carry on appearances.

In bathroom ceramics factory W.C. Boggs & Son, the traditionalist owner W.C. Boggs (Kenneth Williams) is having no end of trouble. Bolshie and lazy union representative Vic Spanner (Kenneth Cope) continually stirs up trouble in the works, to the irritation of his co-workers and management. He calls a strike for almost any minor incident – or because he wants time off to attend a local football match. Sid Plummer (Sid James) is the site foreman bridging the gap between workers and management, shrewdly keeping the place going amid the unrest.

Prissy product designer Charles Coote (Charles Hawtrey) has included a bidet in his latest range of designs, but W.C. objects to the manufacture of such "dubious" items. W.C. will not change his stance even after his son, Lewis (Lew) Boggs (Richard O'Callaghan), secures a large overseas order for the bidets. It is a deal that could save the struggling firm, which W.C. has to admit is in debt to the banks.