The Great St. Trinian's Train Robbery is a British comedy film set in the fictional St Trinian's School, released in 1966, three years after the historical Great Train Robbery had taken place. It also parodies the technocratic ideas of the Harold Wilson government and its support of the comprehensive school system.
Directed by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat to a script by Sidney and Leslie Gilliat, it was the last of a series of four St. Trinian's films. However it retained only George Cole as "Flash Harry" and Richard Wattis as Manton Bassett (a civil servant) from the earlier films. It brought in several new actors, including Frankie Howerd as Alfred (Alphonse) Askett, Reg Varney as Gilbert, and Dora Bryan as Miss Spottiswood, the school headmistress. Although asked twice, Joyce Grenfell refused to appear again as Sergeant Ruby Gates. She later said that she had regretted appearing in the St Trinian's films.[citation needed]
Raymond Huntley appeared as the Minister of Education, and the civil servants of the Ministry of Education were played by Eric Barker as Culpepper-Brown, and Richard Wattis. Cyril Chamberlain appeared as Maxie.
Plot
The first colour entry in St. Trinian's series takes inspiration from the notorious real-life mail train robbery of 1963. The fourth entry in the series based on Ronald Searle's cartoon schoolgirls has its moments but lacks inspiration and the presence of Alastair Sim and Joyce Grenfell is sorely missed.
Alphonse Askett (Frankie Howerd), leads a gang of crooks who pull of a train-robbery, Operation Windfall, and stash their loot in a deserted country mansion. After waiting a few years they return to the mansion to collect their £2.5 million booty, unfortunately, following a Labour election triumph, the building has been converted into a new home for St. Trinian's School for Girls. The crooks decide to infiltrate the school by sending Askett’s delinquent daughters, Lavinia and Marcia Mary, to St. Trinian’s to find out where the loot is stashed. The crooks attempt to retrieve the money on Parent's Day, disguised as caterers, results in a climatic train chase between the robbers and the girls.
Cast
Filming notes
All of the railway scenes were filmed on the former Longmoor Military Railway. However in the final railway scene where the girls 'return' the money the British Railways station at Liss can be seen in the background, separated from the Longmoor Railway by a fence
The locomotives used were:
- Longmoor Military Railway WD Austerity 2-10-0 AD601 'Kitchener' as the express locomotive in mock-up green livery and carrying a fake BR-pattern numberplate on the smokebox door. It carried this livery until it was scrapped several years later.
- Two LNER Class J94 Tank Engines, one of which was mocked up to resemble a J50 and temporarily renumbered 68961, the other one, No. 68011, remaining unrebuilt.
- One Class 11 shunter in Longmoor colours but carrying British Railways markings.
- A DEMU in BR livery as the commuter train commandeered by the police (number 1102, Class 205).
- A Wickham trolley used in the school staff's attempt to join the chase.
The extras in the train carriages were pupils from a local convent school.
External links
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St Trinian's School |
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Hurrah for St Trinian's (1948) · The Female Approach (1950) · Back to the Slaughterhouse (1952) · The Terror of St Trinian's (1952) · Souls in Torment (1953) · The Curse of St. Trinian's (1993) · The Terror of St Trinian's & other drawings (2000) · St. Trinian's: The cartoons (2007)
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Original series
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1980 revival
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21st century series
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