Hobson's Choice (1931 film)
Encyclopedia
Hobson's Choice is a 1931 British comedy
drama film
directed by Thomas Bentley
and starring James Harcourt
, Viola Lyel
, Frank Pettingell
and Herbert Lomas
. A coarse bootshop owner is outraged when his eldest daughter decides to marry a meek cobbler
. It is based
on the play Hobson's Choice by Harold Brighouse
.
The film is currently missing from the BFI National Archive
, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute
's "75 Most Wanted
" lost films.
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Thomas Bentley
Thomas Bentley
Thomas Bentley was a British film director. He directed 68 films between 1912 and 1941. He directed three films in the early DeForest Phonofilm sound-on-film process, The Man in the Street , The Antidote , and Acci-Dental Treatment .Bentley was born in London and originally trained as an engineer,...
and starring James Harcourt
James Harcourt
James Harcourt was a British character actor. He was born on 20 April 1873 in Headingley, Yorkshire.He started work as a cabinet maker, and drifted into amateur dramatics...
, Viola Lyel
Viola Lyel
-Selected filmography:* Hobson's Choice * Let Me Explain, Dear * Channel Crossing * Over the Garden Wall * A Political Party * The Farmer's Wife * This Man Is Dangerous...
, Frank Pettingell
Frank Pettingell
Frank Pettingell was an English actor.Pettingell was born in Liverpool, and educated at Manchester University...
and Herbert Lomas
Herbert Lomas (actor)
Herbet Lomas was a British actor who appeared in more than forty films in a career lasting between 1931 and 1955. He was born in Burnley, Lancashire in 1887 and made his first screen appearance in the 1931 film Hobson's Choice.-Filmography:...
. A coarse bootshop owner is outraged when his eldest daughter decides to marry a meek cobbler
Shoemaking
Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand. Traditional handicraft shoemaking has now been largely superseded in volume of shoes produced by industrial mass production of footwear, but not necessarily in quality, attention to detail, or...
. It is based
on the play Hobson's Choice by Harold Brighouse
Harold Brighouse
Harold Brighouse was an English playwright and author whose best known play is Hobson's Choice. He was a prominent member, together with Allan Monkhouse and Stanley Houghton, of a group known as the Manchester School of dramatists.-Early life:Harold Brighouse was born in Eccles, Salford, the...
.
The film is currently missing from the BFI National Archive
BFI National Archive
The BFI National Archive is a department of the British Film Institute, and one of the largest film archives in the world. It was originally set up as the National Film Library in 1935; its first curator was Ernest Lindgren. In 1955 its name became the National Film Archive, and in 1992, the...
, and is listed as one of the British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
's "75 Most Wanted
BFI 75 Most Wanted
The BFI 75 Most Wanted is a list compiled by the British Film Institute of their most sought-after British feature films not currently held in the BFI National Archive, and classified as "missing, believed lost". The films chosen range from quota quickies and B-movies to lavish prestige...
" lost films.
Cast
- James Harcourt - Hobson
- Viola LyelViola Lyel-Selected filmography:* Hobson's Choice * Let Me Explain, Dear * Channel Crossing * Over the Garden Wall * A Political Party * The Farmer's Wife * This Man Is Dangerous...
- Maggie Hobson - Frank PettingellFrank PettingellFrank Pettingell was an English actor.Pettingell was born in Liverpool, and educated at Manchester University...
- Will Mossup - Belle ChrystallBelle ChrystallBelle Chrystall was a British actress who appeared in a number of leading roles in British films during the 1930s. She was born in Preston, Lancashire in 1910. She came to London and after appearing on stage was given a minor part in a film A Warm Corner, directed by Victor Saville but she was...
- Vicky Hobson - Jay LaurierJay Laurier-Selected filmography:* Hobson's Choice * Pyjamas Preferred * I'll Stick to You * Waltz Time * The Black Tulip -External links:...
- Tubby Wadlow - Joan MaudeJoan MaudeJoan Maude was an English actress, active from the 1920s to the 1950s...
- Alice Hobson - Amy VenessAmy VenessAmy Veness was a British film actress. She played the role of Grandma Huggett in The Huggetts Trilogy.-Selected filmography:* Please Help Emily * Let Me Explain, Dear * A Southern Maid...
- Mrs. Hepworth - Reginald BachReginald Bach-Selected filmography:* The Chinese Puzzle * The Amazing Quest of Mr. Ernest Bliss * Empress Josephine; Or, Wife of a Demigod * A Romance of Mayfair * The Girl in the Night * Hobson's Choice...
- Albert Prosser - Basil MossBasil MossBasil Moss is a British character actor, who featured regularly on television in the 1960s and on radio in the 1970s.-Early life:He was educated at St Paul's School, which he followed with actor's training.-Acting career:...
- Freddy Beenstock - Herbert LomasHerbert Lomas (actor)Herbet Lomas was a British actor who appeared in more than forty films in a career lasting between 1931 and 1955. He was born in Burnley, Lancashire in 1887 and made his first screen appearance in the 1931 film Hobson's Choice.-Filmography:...
- Jim Heeler - Kathleen HarrisonKathleen HarrisonKathleen Harrison was a prolific English character actress best remembered for her role as Mrs. Huggett in a trio of British post-war comedies about a working class family's misadventures. To modern viewers she is better remembered as Mrs...
- Ada Figgins