Meet Simon Cherry ** (1949, Hugh Moxey, Zena Marshall, John Bailey, Anthony Forwood) – Classic Movie Review 13,041

Hammer Films’ 1949 British mystery film Meet Simon Cherry stars Hugh Moxey as a crime solving cleric, Zena Marshall, John Bailey, and Anthony Forwood in his film debut. It is based on a once popular BBC radio serial by Gale Pedrick. 

Director Godfrey Grayson’s 1949 British mystery film Meet Simon Cherry stars Hugh Moxey as a crime solving cleric, Zena Marshall, John Bailey, and Anthony Forwood in his film debut.

Hugh Moxey stars as the Anglican priest and amateur sleuth the Rev Simon Cherry, who solves a run-of-the-mill murder mystery about the puzzling death of sick woman Monica Harling (Jeanette Tregarthen), the reclusive invalid daughter of Lady Harling (Courtney Hope), in this simple, small-scale Hammer Films studio suspense thriller.

Zena Marshall also stars as Lisa Colville, the young woman who is suspected of killing her and of course the Rev Simon Cherry (Moxey) takes on the challenge of proving her innocence.

Meet Simon Cherry has its slight charms, mainly some of the performers and its air of cheerful amateurishness. But there is not much in the way of a decent mystery plot, it is extremely static, all too cheaply made, very old-fashioned and much too cosy.

It comes from the ancient days when Hammer Films were making film spinoffs from wireless programmes. The screenplay by Godfrey Grayson (original story and screenplay) and A R Rawlinson (screenplay) is based on Gale Pedrick’s once popular BBC radio show Meet the Rev.

Of course there is nothing new here: the crime solving clergyman idea had been already used in the Father Brown stories of G K Chesterton.

The cast are Hugh Moxey as Simon Cherry ‘The Rev’, Jeannette Tregarthen as Monica Harling, Anthony Forwood as Alan Colville, Ernest Butcher as Young, Zena Marshall as Lisa Colville, John Bailey as Henry Dantry, Courtney Hope as Lady Harling, Arthur Lovegrove as Charlie Banks, Gerald Case as Smails, John Arnatt as Tommy, and Victor Harrington as Party Guest.

Meet Simon Cherry is directed by Godfrey Grayson, runs 67 minutes, is made by Hammer Films, is released by Exclusive Films (UK), is written by Godfrey Grayson (original story and screenplay) and A R Rawlinson (screenplay), based on the radio series Meet the Rev by Gale Pedrick, is shot by Cedric Williams, is produced by Anthony Hinds, and is scored by Rupert Grayson and Frank Spencer, with Art Direction by Denis Wreford.

It was shot at Cookham Dean, Berkshire, England.

Release date: November 1949 (UK).

Hugh Moxey receives an introducing credit so it is his official film debut, though he earlier had an uncredited role as Detective at Racetrack in Now Barabbas.

Anthony Forwood.

It is the film debut of Anthony Forwood, who married actress Glynis Johns in 1942 but divorced in 1948. He then lived with his partner Dirk Bogarde, in Amersham, England, at Grade II listed Beel House, and then in France.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,041

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