Maytime in Mayfair

1949 British film

Maytime in Mayfair

Film poster

Directed by| Herbert Wilcox
Written by| Nicholas Phipps
Produced by| Anna Neagle
Herbert Wilcox
Starring| Anna Neagle
Michael Wilding
Cinematography| Mutz Greenbaum (as Max Greene)
Music by| Robert Farnon

Production
company

Herbert Wilcox Productions (as Imperadio)

Distributed by| British Lion Films

Release date

* 12 September 1949 (1949-09-12) (general release)

Running time

| 94 minutes
Country| United Kingdom
Language| English
Box office| £268,984 (UK)[1]

Maytime in Mayfair is a 1949 British musical romance film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Michael Wilding, Nicholas Phipps, and Tom Walls.[2] It was a follow-up to Spring in Park Lane.[3]

The film was one of the most popular movies at the British box office in 1949.[4][5]

## Plot

[edit]

The film begins with a brief history of Mayfair then shows a man walking into a florist in Shepherd Market.

Debonair Michael Gore-Brown inherits a London fashion house: Maison Londres. Knowing nothing about business or fashion, he becomes romantically involved with its beautiful manageress, Eileen Grahame, who he says reminds him of Anna Neagle. He blithely helps himself to the petty cash to buy her lunch and brings in his ex-military cousin Sir Henry as a 'business advisor'. They are interrupted by the foppish D'Arcy Davenport, Eileen's fiancé.

A nearby rival fashion house learns of Eileen's new secret collection and leaks the story to the papers. It emerges that the cousin accidentally passed the story whilst drunk. Eileen angrily quits the business to work for the rival, who now plans to buy the business at a knock-down price. When she learns that Michael is about to do this, she returns to sort out the mess, and marries him.[6]

## Cast

[edit]

* Anna Neagle as Eileen Grahame
* Michael Wilding as Michael Gore-Brown
* Peter Graves as D'Arcy Davenport
* Nicholas Phipps as Sir Henry Hazelrigg
* Thora Hird as Janet
* Michael Shepley as Shepherd
* Tom Walls as Inspector Hennessey
* Max Kirby as Mr Keats
* Desmond Walter-Ellis as Mr. Shelley
* Tom Walls Jr. as Constable
* Doris Rogers as Lady Manbury-Logan-Manbury
* Mona Washbourne as Lady Leveson

## Costume Design

[edit]

* Hardy Amies
* Charles Creed
* Norman Hartnell
* Mattli
* Molyneux
* Digby Morton
* Bianca Mosca
* Peter Russell
* Victor Stiebel

## Production

[edit]

The film marked the fourth teaming of Anna Neagle and Michael Wilding.[7]

After the film started shooting Tom Walls called Wilcox asking for a role. Wilcox put in a part of a policeman for the actor.[8] Filming took place in January through to March 1949.[9] Four lines of clothing were designed specifically for the film.[10][11]

## Soundtrack

[edit]

* Maytime in Mayfair

Music by Harry Parr Davies
Lyrics by Harold Purcell

* Amor

Written by Gabriel Ruiz and Ricardo Lopez
English Lyrics by Sunny Skylar

* Do I Love You?

Written by Bruno Bidoli, David Heneker and Don Pelosi

* I'm Not Going Home

Written by Kermit Goell and Fred Prisker

* The Moment I Saw You

Music by Manning Sherwin
Lyrics by Harold Purcell

## Reception

[edit]

### Box Office

[edit]

The film was hugely popular in Britain. The Motion Picture Herald said it was the third most watched film of the year after The Third Man and Johnny Belinda and more than Scott of the Antarctic, Paleface, Easter Parade, The Blue Lagoon, Red River, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and The Hasty Heart. Neagle and Wilding were voted the most popular stars of the year in Britain.[12] According to Kinematograph Weekly the 'biggest winner' at the box office in 1949 Britain was The Third Man with "runners up" being Johnny Belinda, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Paleface, Scott of the Antarctic, The Blue Lagoon, Maytime in Mayfair, Easter Parade, Red River and You Can't Sleep Here.[13]

However even by December 1949 the film had not recouped its cost.[14]

### Critical reception

[edit]

The New York Times called the film "nauseously Technicolored flimflam";[15] while TV Guide noted "The plot is about as simple as they come, but it's told so nicely that you can't help but be charmed. Wilding and Neagle are a sort of British Astaire and Rogers, playing well off each other in this lighthearted romp. The beautiful fashion designs, as well as glorious set decor, are well captured in the Technicolor photography."[16]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Vincent Porter, 'The Robert Clark Account', Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol 20 No 4, 2000 p489
2. ^ BFI Database entry
3. ^ MAYTIME IN MAYFAIR Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 16, Iss. 181, (Jan 1, 1949): 115.
4. ^ "TOPS AT HOME". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane: National Library of Australia. 31 December 1949. p. 4. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
5. ^ Thumim, Janet. "The popular cash and culture in the postwar British cinema industry". Screen. Vol. 32, no. 3\. p. 258.
6. ^ "Maytime in Mayfair | Film review and movie reviews". Radio Times. 8 April 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
7. ^ "THE STARRY WAY". The Courier-mail. No. 3729\. Queensland, Australia. 6 November 1948. p. 2. Retrieved 20 May 2019 - via National Library of Australia.
8. ^ "News from the studios". The Australian Women's Weekly. Vol. 16, no. 32\. Australia. 15 January 1949. p. 31. Retrieved 20 May 2019 - via National Library of Australia.
9. ^ "U.K. movie producers wait for Govt, move". The Sun. No. 12, 187. New South Wales, Australia. 17 February 1949. p. 25 (LATE FINAL EXTRA). Retrieved 20 May 2019 - via National Library of Australia.
10. ^ "LONDON FASHION IN A FILM". The Sunday Herald (Sydney). No. 15\. New South Wales, Australia. 1 May 1949. p. 6 (Magazine Section). Retrieved 20 May 2019 - via National Library of Australia.
11. ^ "Parade of model gowns in new film". The Sun. No. 2404\. New South Wales, Australia. 8 May 1949. p. 5 (COLOR MAGAZINE). Retrieved 20 May 2019 - via National Library of Australia.
12. ^ "BRITISH STUDIOS PLAN 44 FILMS". Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate. No. 22, 854. New South Wales, Australia. 31 December 1949. p. 3. Retrieved 20 May 2019 - via National Library of Australia.
13. ^ Lant, Antonia (1991). Blackout : reinventing women for wartime British cinema. Princeton University Press. p. 232.
14. ^ FILM PRODUCERS' HEAVY LOSS: A Shareholder's Questions The Manchester Guardian 31 Dec 1949: 3.
15. ^ Crowther, Bosley (23 April 1952). "Movie Review – Maytime in Mayfair – THE SCREEN IN REVIEW". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
16. ^ "Maytime In Mayfair Review". Movies.tvguide.com. Retrieved 20 June 2014.

## External links

[edit]

* Maytime in Mayfair at IMDb
* Maytime in Mayfair at BFI Screenonline

* v
* t
* e

Films by Herbert Wilcox

As director|

* Chu-Chin-Chow (1923)
* Southern Love (1924)
* Decameron Nights (1924)
* The Only Way (1926)
* Nell Gwyn (1926)
* London (1926)
* Tip Toes (1927)
* Madame Pompadour (1927)
* Mumsie (1927)
* Dawn (1928)
* The Bondman (1929)
* The Woman in White (1929)
* The Loves of Robert Burns (1930)
* The Chance of a Night Time (1931)
* Carnival (1931)
* The Blue Danube (1932)
* Goodnight, Vienna (1932)
* Money Means Nothing (1932)
* The Little Damozel (1933)
* Bitter Sweet (1933)
* Yes, Mr Brown (1933)
* The Queen's Affair (1934)
* Nell Gwyn (1934)
* Peg of Old Drury (1935)
* This'll Make You Whistle  (1936)
* Three Maxims (1936)
* London Melody (1937)
* Limelight (1937)
* Victoria the Great (1937)
* Sixty Glorious Years  (1938)
* Nurse Edith Cavell (1939)
* Irene (1940)
* No, No, Nanette (1940)
* Sunny (1941)
* They Flew Alone (1942)
* Forever and a Day (1943)
* Yellow Canary (1943)
* I Live in Grosvenor Square  (1945)
* Piccadilly Incident  (1946)
* The Courtneys of Curzon Street (1947)
* Spring in Park Lane (1948)
* Elizabeth of Ladymead  (1948)
* Maytime in Mayfair (1949)
* Odette (1950)
* Into the Blue (1950)
* The Lady with a Lamp (1951)
* Derby Day (1952)
* Trent's Last Case (1952)
* Laughing Anne (1953)
* Trouble in the Glen (1954)
* Lilacs in the Spring (1954)
* King's Rhapsody (1955)
* My Teenage Daughter (1956)
* These Dangerous Years (1957)
* The Man Who Wouldn't Talk (1958)
* Wonderful Things! (1958)
* The Lady Is a Square (1959)
* The Heart of a Man (1959)

Producer only|

* The Wonderful Story (1922)
* Flames of Passion (1922)
* Paddy the Next Best Thing (1923)
* A Peep Behind the Scenes (1929)
* When Knights Were Bold (1929)
* Black Waters (1929)
* Splinters (1929)
* Rookery Nook (1930)
* Wolves (1930)
* Warned Off (1930)
* On Approval (1930)
* Plunder (1930)
* Tons of Money (1930)
* The Speckled Band (1931)
* Almost a Divorce (1931)
* Up for the Cup (1931)
* Mischief (1931)
* A Night Like This (1932)
* Life Goes On (1932)
* The Mayor's Nest (1932)
* Thark (1932)
* The Love Contract (1932)
* Leap Year (1932)
* The Flag Lieutenant (1932)
* Say It with Music (1932)
* The Barton Mystery (1932)
* The King's Cup (1933)
* Discord (1933)
* One Precious Year (1933)
* The Blarney Stone (1933)
* Lord of the Manor (1933)
* It's a King (1933)
* Summer Lightning (1933)
* Purse Strings (1933)
* That's a Good Girl (1933)
* Up for the Derby (1933)
* Just My Luck (1933)
* Trouble (1933)
* Night of the Garter (1933)
* Sorrell and Son (1933)
* Faces (1934)
* Lucky Loser (1934)
* It's a Cop (1934)
* General John Regan (1934)
* Girls, Please! (1934)
* Up to the Neck (1934)
* The King of Paris (1934)
* Lilies of the Field (1934)
* Brewster's Millions (1935)
* Escape Me Never (1935)
* Come Out of the Pantry (1935)
* Fame (1936)
* The Frog (1937)
* The Rat (1937)
* The Return of the Frog (1938)
* A Royal Divorce (1938)
* No Parking (1938)
* Blondes for Danger (1938)
* The Beggar's Opera (1953)
* Yangtse Incident (1957)
* The Navy Lark (1959)

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