Sir Henry at Rawlinson End (film)
| Sir Henry at Rawlinson End | |
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Sir Henry at Rawlinson End DVD
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| Directed by | Steve Roberts |
| Produced by | Tony Stratton-Smith |
| Written by | Vivian Stanshall and Steve Roberts |
| Starring |
Trevor Howard Patrick Magee Denise Coffey J. G. Devlin Harry Fowler Sheila Reid Jeremy Child Liz Smith |
| Narrated by | Vivian Stanshall |
| Music by | Vivian Stanshall |
| Cinematography | Martin Bell |
| Edited by | Chris Rose |
| Distributed by | Digital Classics DVD |
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Release date
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1980 |
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Running time
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73 min. |
| Country | U.K. |
| Language | English |
Sir Henry at Rawlinson End is a 1980 British film based on the eponymous character created by Vivian Stanshall (see Rawlinson End Radio Flashes, Sir Henry at Rawlinson End (recording)). It starred Trevor Howard as Sir Henry and Stanshall himself as Henry's brother Hubert. Unusually, the film was released in sepia-toned monochrome. After a long wait, while the film obtained cult status, Sir Henry at Rawlinson End was finally released on DVD in 2006. The bonuses include a commentary track with the director, Steve Roberts, as well as Sheila Reid (Aunt Florrie) and Jeremy Child (Peregrine Maynard), as well as a picture gallery, synopsis, the script of unfilmed scenes, and actor biographies.
The plot of Sir Henry at Rawlinson End revolves around attempts to exorcise the ghost of Humbert, the brother of drunken aristocrat Sir Henry (Trevor Howard). Humbert was accidentally killed in a drunken duck-shooting incident whilst escaping trouserless from an illicit tryst. It transpires that Humbert's ghost will not rest until it is supplied with replacement trousers. Until then the ghost walks the corridors of Rawlinson End, often accompanied by that of Humbert's dog Gums which has repossessed its own body, now stuffed and mounted on a trolley.
Amongst the eccentric family members, mad friends and grudgingly loyal servants involved are the eternally knitting Aunt Florrie, the tapeworm-obsessed Mrs. E, Lady Philippa of Staines (Liz Smith), who enjoys the odd 'small' sherry and the ever-present Old Scrotum, Sir Henry's wrinkled retainer.
'It's impossible to do justice to the film's arrant and quite unique lunacy.' – The Financial Times
'Sir Henry is a comic masterpiece.' – NME
'This extraordinary film is one of the most haphazard British comedies I've seen. It is also a long time since I've laughed so much... a cult in the making.' – The Guardian
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