Carry On Spying

Dir: Gerald Thomas

1964

***

Carry On Spying, the ninth Carry On of the series, was a spoof on the spy film. Albert R. Broccoli, the James Bond producer, famously threatened legal action against Peter Rogers and Gerald Thomas for trying to use the name James Bind 006½ for their lead character. The film's poster also had to be changed due to similarities to From Russia With Love's poster, which was released the year before. I think there was a certain absence of humour on Albert R. Broccoli part but then the Bond franchise was still quite young and they did have Goldfinger coming out just months later. Carry On Spying may be remembered for being a Bond spoof but in truth, the similarities aren't there, with only two films released, the 007 series wasn't really a big thing at that point. Carry On Spying concentrated on the spy noirs of the 40s and 50s, The Third Man and Casablanca being the most obvious. It was to be the last of the black and white Carry Ons, the franchise had made it, was highly popular and even with a tiny budget, they could stretch to technicolor. The cast was a bit thin as Carry On regulars go with Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey and Jim Dale returning once more and Bernard Cribbins making his second and last Carry On appearance (in the classic series anyway, he did return 28 years later for Carry On Columbus). However, Carry On Spying marked the introduction of Barbara Windsor to the series, a fan favourite and a lead player for the rest of the franchise. It's quite funny too, with most of the spoof jokes working. Highlights include the evil society of STENCH (Society for the Total Extinction of Non-Conforming Humans), Agent Honeybutt, the idea of Charles Hawtrey as a dashing young spy and Kenneth Williams in a fez. The noir effects are actually rather good too, but unsurprising given Gerald Thomas' body of work. A rather good but overlooked addition to the series.