The Broken Horseshoe *** (1953, Robert Beatty, Elizabeth Sellars, Peter Coke, Vida Hope, Ferdy Mayne, George Benson) – Classic Movie Review 11,740

Director Martyn C Webster’s 1953 black and white crime mystery thriller The Broken Horseshoe stars Robert Beatty, Elizabeth Sellars, Peter Coke, Vida Hope, Ferdy Mayne, George Benson, and Ronald Leigh Hunt. It is based on a six-part TV serial The Broken Horseshoe by writer Francis Durbridge, screened the previous year. Beatty stars as surgeon Dr Mark Fenton, who becomes the prime suspect after he operates on a hit-and-run victim, who is then murdered.

One of those splendidly convoluted 50s Francis Durbridge TV thriller serials makes it to the screen in a good British B-movie shot at humble Nettlefold studios.

This old-fashioned, creaky picture is ingeniously plotted and nimbly acted by Robert Beatty as the doctor in distress (because he is mixed up with murder and drug runners) and Elizabeth Sellars as Miss Della Freeman, the mystery woman who is linked to a horse-doping syndicate, falls for the doctor and gets him off the hook by exposing the villains.

On the side of the law, Peter Coke plays the Detective Inspector, Ronald Leigh Hunt plays the police Sergeant and James Raglan is the Superintendent.

The cast are Robert Beatty as Dr Mark Fenton, Elizabeth Sellars as Della Freeman, Peter Coke as Detective Inspector George Bellamy, Hugh Kelly as Dr Craig, Janet Butler as Sister Rogers, Vida Hope as Jackie Leroy, Ferdy Mayne as Charles Constance, James Raglan as Superintendent Grayson, George Benson as Prescott, Roger Delgado as Felix Gallegos, Ronald Leigh-Hunt as Sergeant Lewis, Hugh Pryse as Mr Rattray, Toke Townley as Fred Barker, Janet Butler, Frank Atkinson, Hugh Pryse, Marc Sheldon, and Robert Raglan.

The Broken Horseshoe writer Francis Durbridge.

Films from Durbridge’s work: the 1946 Send for Paul Temple (with Anthony Hulme as Paul Temple), the 1948 Calling Paul Temple (based on Send for Paul Temple Again, with John Bentley as Paul Temple), the 1950 Paul Temple’s Triumph (based on News of Paul Temple, with John Bentley as Paul Temple), the 1952 Paul Temple Returns (based on Paul Temple Intervenes, with John Bentley as Paul Temple), the 1953 The Broken Horseshoe (based on the 1952 BBC TV series), the 1953 Operation Diplomat (based on the 1952 BBC TV series), the 1954 The Teckman Mystery (based on The Teckman Biography), the 1955 Portrait of Alison (US: Postmark for Danger) (based on Portrait of Alison), and the 1957 The Vicious Circle.

 © Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,740

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com