Marry the Girl ** (1935, Sonnie Hale, Winifred Shotter, Hugh Wakefield, Judy Kelly) – Classic Movie Review 11,181

Marry the Girl (1935, Winifred Shotter).

The 1935 British black and white comedy film Marry the Girl is directed by Maclean Rogers, who wrote the screenplay with Kathleen Butler, adapting the 1930 Aldwych stage farce Marry the Girl, written by George Arthurs and Arthur H Miller.

Marry the Girl is the tenth and last film of the 12 Aldwych farce plays, filmed by British Lion Films, a company new to the series, disappointingly with none of the original stars, apart from Winifred Shotter, reprising her stage role.

Sonnie Hale stars as Wally Gibbs, who is sued for breach of promise by his former girlfriend Doris Chattaway (Winifred Shotter). After his current fiancée Jane Elliott (Judy Kelly) breaks off their engagement, Wally ends up with Doris, while Jane pairs with Wally’s friend Hugh Delafield (Hugh Wakefield), counsel for the defence in the breach of promise lawsuit.

It was made at Beaconsfield Studios with sets designed by Norman G Arnold.

The cast are Sonnie Hale as Wally Gibbs, Winifred Shotter as Doris Chattaway, Hugh Wakefield as Hugh Delafield, Judy Kelly as Jane Elliott, C. Denier Warren as Banks, Kenneth Kove as Cyril Chattaway, Maidie Hope as Mrs Elliott, Wally Patch as Bookmaker, John Deverell as Judge and Lawrence Anderson as counsel for the defence.

The series of 12 stage Aldwych farces, nine written by Ben Travers, were staged more or less continuously from 1923 to 1933 at the Aldwych Theatre, London. Most of the farces, and other Travers works, were filmed during the 1930s, with many of the actors from the plays. Tom Walls directed all but two of the films.

The ten adaptations made on film of the original Aldwych farces are: Rookery Nook [One Embarrassing Night] (1930), Plunder (1931), A Night Like This (1932), Thark (1932), A Cuckoo in the Nest (1933), Turkey Time (1933), Just My Luck (1933), A Cup of Kindness (1934), Dirty Work (1934), and Marry the Girl (1935).

Other filmed farces by Travers, with one or more of the Aldwych stars, are: The Chance of a Night Time (1931; based on The Dippers), Fighting Stock (1935), Foreign Affaires (1935; original screenplay), Pot Luck (1936; loosely based on A Night Like This), Second Best Bed (1938; based on a Travers story), and Banana Ridge (1941).

On stage, Rookery Nook has been regularly revived and Plunder has had several revivals.

Winifred Shotter (5 November 1904 – 4 April 1996) played in eight of the Aldwych farces and four films of the Aldwych plays. During the Second World War she joined ENSA, performing for troops in Europe and Asia, and after the war she joined the BBC as an announcer on the relaunched TV service.

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,181

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