Cucumber Castle (film)
| Cucumber Castle | |
|---|---|
| Written by |
Barry Gibb Maurice Gibb |
| Directed by | Hugh Gladwish |
| Starring | Barry Gibb Maurice Gibb Eleanor Bron Frankie Howerd |
| Theme music composer | Bee Gees |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Mike Mansfield |
| Cinematography | Ben Knoll |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Distributor | Robert Stigwood Organisation |
| Release | |
| Original release |
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Cucumber Castle is a British comedy film starring The Bee Gees that aired on BBC1 on 26 December 1970.
By the time filming began in 1969, the Bee Gees were down to a trio consisting of Barry and Maurice Gibb and the drummer Colin Petersen. Robin Gibb quit the group earlier in the year following the release of the group's fourth album Odessa. Songs for the film were recorded during the summer of 1969 with Petersen on drums, but when filming began, he was fired from the group. His scenes from the film were cut and he is not credited on the accompanying album, though he does play on some songs.
The plot revolves around two heirs, Prince Frederick (Barry Gibb) and his brother Prince Marmaduke (Maurice Gibb), and their dying father (Frankie Howerd). On his death bed, The King orders his kingdom divided into two halves, the Kingdom of Jelly and the Kingdom of Cucumbers. Before the king even dies, Prince Frederick declares himself the "King of Cucumber" and Prince Marmaduke becomes the "King of Jelly". The film intersperses comedy sketches with Bee Gees songs plus performances by Lulu and Blind Faith with several cameo appearances. At the end, the king changes his mind and comes back, "I think these girls are working".
The title was briefly released in the U.S. in the early days of home video by the tiny label Video Tape Network, but quickly disappeared from sale, likely due to a licensing dispute. The tape was once cited by Video Review magazine as the rarest commercial release ever, and copies have fetched three figures on the collector's market. It has never since been officially released on home video in any form, though bootlegs have circulated for years.
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