The Bargee
Encyclopedia
The Bargee is a 1964 British comedy film directed by Duncan Wood
, and starring Harry H. Corbett
, Hugh Griffith
, Eric Sykes
and Ronnie Barker
. The screenplay was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.
From the start Hemel is shown to be proud of his job and his heritage and very unwilling to leave the canals, stating "The only way you'll get me off the canals is to fill 'em in!"
At Brentford, while the boats are being loaded, Hemel plans out his journey, with what stops and what women. While he acts insouciant while mentioning most of the women, he is shown to have a particular soft spot for one, Christine.
During the journey they come across 'the mariner' [Eric Skyes], as a gullible and irritating owner of a GRP cruiser, a boat that was becoming predominant on the canals during this time, and who would crop up throughout the film.
At Rickmansworth Hemel meets with the first of his planned flames, Nelly [Miriam Karlin], at her pub 'The Boat Horse'. This does not go according to plan, first by Nelly suggesting that they should get married (which Hemel balks at) and then during the evening she discovering he is seeing other women. He and Ronnie end up being chased out of the pub by Nelly wielding a knife and promising to skin Hemel if he and when he returns that way.
At Boxmoor while the boats are being unloaded; Hemel gets in a heated discussion with the foreman [Eric Parkes] about living on the boats. Again, Hemel defends the boats and shows his aversion to living 'on the bank'. The mariner briefly appears again here.
His next flame, Cynthia, [Jo Rowbottom] joins Hemel on the butty, and Ronnie is left to work the pair on his own. While passing a factory block, pressumably turned into an office block, Hemel's popularity with women is shown by having all of the female staff leaning out of the windows as the boats pass, shouting out for Hemel and going back inside disappointed when Ronnie informs them that Hemel isn't out because "he's having his dinner". Cynthia leaves the boat when they are going down some locks.
The journey continues and Ronnie asks why Hemel is bothering with Christine (the next planned). Hemel says that he happens "to think very highly of this one" and Ronnie warns him that he needs to be careful with her, because of her overprotective father.
The film switches over to Christine's lock keeper father, Joe (Hugh Griffith), shouting at a young man whom he has pinned to the floor, evidently having been fighting with him. When he goes back into the lock cottage, his daughter starts a heated conversation about his overprotective behaviour, which he counters by saying he doesn't want her to "get tied up with one of that lot off the canal" The argument is cut short by the arrival of Ronnie and Hemmel at the lock.
Hemmel gives Ronnie some money and tells him to "keep him (Joe) lashed up 'till closing time" and Ronnie and Joe go off to the pub, leaving Christine and Hemel alone. This is apparently the pattern for Hemel and Christine's liaisons.
While at the pub, the only way Ronnie is able to keep Joe from going back to the house (ergo discovering Hemel and Christine) is by challenging his ability to handle drink. This turns into a full blown competition that all the pub takes part in.
Meanwhile, Christine (who knows she is pregnant) questions Hemel about whether he ever wants children. Hemel answers the affirmative, but this turns into a row as to whether he would leave the canal for it. This is cut short by Hemel realising how quiet the nearby pub has gone.
Back at the pub Joe is the only person left awake after the drinking contest. He has won after drinking 29 pints and Ronnie is left slumped on the bar, with the rest of the pub also asleep in various positions.
Joe leaves the pub and shouts "I can out-drink any man on this canal!", alerting Hemel and Christine of his imminent return. After a close call, Hemel makes it back to the boats without detection.
The next morning a severely hungover Joe is being berated by Christine for drinking so much. She leaves the room to continue her work, and is shown to be feeling faint. There is the sound of breaking crockery and Joe finds her unconscious.
The doctor is called and her pregnancy is revealed to Joe, who manages to ascertain from her (amidst the argument) that the father of the child is one of the boatmen.
Meanwhile; Hemel and Ronnie have made it to Birmingham. Hemel is shown with yet another woman on his arm and Ronnie is, as usual, without one at all.
In order to find the father Joe drains the pound and makes a bomb and rigs it to the lockgates, promising to hold up traffic until the guilty party is found and threatening to blow up the gates if anyone tries to touch them.
Ronnie and Hemel are bringing the boats back and come across the backed up traffic. They go to find out whats happened and find out Christine is pregnant. They are about to back the boats up and run away when Christine is heard pleading with some boatwomen to let her go. Hemel rushes in to defend her and the boatwomen pick up on his attitude to Christine, putting two and two together. Christine adamantly states that she wont marry him because she doesn't want to live on the boats.
Joe comes forward and, after giving Hemel his blessing to marry Christine, punches him.
Hemel is shown in a variety of land based jobs before the wedding, each one ending in him being fired. He is seen obviously missing the canals.
Ronnie is bringing the boats through one day and Christine runs to meet him, and finds out that the boats are to be signed off in eighteen months. Christine takes pity on Hemel and enlists Ronnie's help.
On Hemel and Christine's wedding day; Hemel is still upset by being on the land, although he is very happy to be with Christine. After cutting the cake, Christine tells him that she has a present for him and leads him outside. Banstead and Bellerophon, freshly painted with Hemel and Christine's names and gaily decorated, are tied up outside and Christine tells Hemel she wants to work the boats with him until the end of carrying eighteen months later.
The film ends with Christine and Hemel going into the butty's cabin while Ronnie sighs and takes over the boats as he's always done.
Duncan Wood
Duncan Wood was a British comedy producer, director and writer. His best known achievements were to produce all of Tony Hancock's Half Hours for BBC TV during the late 1950s and early 1960s, and later, also with Hancock's former writers Ray Galton and Alan Simpson, the classic British sitcom...
, and starring Harry H. Corbett
Harry H. Corbett
Harry H. Corbett OBE was an English actor.Corbett was best known for his starring role in the popular and long-running BBC Television sitcom Steptoe and Son in the 1960s and 70s...
, Hugh Griffith
Hugh Griffith
Hugh Emrys Griffith was a Welsh film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Griffith was born in Marianglas, Anglesey, Wales, the son of Mary and William Griffith. He was educated at Llangefni County School and attempted to gain entrance to university, but failed the English examination...
, Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...
and Ronnie Barker
Ronnie Barker
Ronald William George "Ronnie" Barker, OBE was a British actor, comedian, writer, critic, broadcaster and businessman...
. The screenplay was written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson.
Plot
The film starts at a British Waterways base sometime in 1962. Boatmen Hemel [Harry H. Corbett] and Ronnie [Ronnie Barker] receive orders for their pair, Banstead and Bellerophon, to take 50 tons of cargo from Brentford to Boxmoor, then run empty to Birmingham.From the start Hemel is shown to be proud of his job and his heritage and very unwilling to leave the canals, stating "The only way you'll get me off the canals is to fill 'em in!"
At Brentford, while the boats are being loaded, Hemel plans out his journey, with what stops and what women. While he acts insouciant while mentioning most of the women, he is shown to have a particular soft spot for one, Christine.
During the journey they come across 'the mariner' [Eric Skyes], as a gullible and irritating owner of a GRP cruiser, a boat that was becoming predominant on the canals during this time, and who would crop up throughout the film.
At Rickmansworth Hemel meets with the first of his planned flames, Nelly [Miriam Karlin], at her pub 'The Boat Horse'. This does not go according to plan, first by Nelly suggesting that they should get married (which Hemel balks at) and then during the evening she discovering he is seeing other women. He and Ronnie end up being chased out of the pub by Nelly wielding a knife and promising to skin Hemel if he and when he returns that way.
At Boxmoor while the boats are being unloaded; Hemel gets in a heated discussion with the foreman [Eric Parkes] about living on the boats. Again, Hemel defends the boats and shows his aversion to living 'on the bank'. The mariner briefly appears again here.
His next flame, Cynthia, [Jo Rowbottom] joins Hemel on the butty, and Ronnie is left to work the pair on his own. While passing a factory block, pressumably turned into an office block, Hemel's popularity with women is shown by having all of the female staff leaning out of the windows as the boats pass, shouting out for Hemel and going back inside disappointed when Ronnie informs them that Hemel isn't out because "he's having his dinner". Cynthia leaves the boat when they are going down some locks.
The journey continues and Ronnie asks why Hemel is bothering with Christine (the next planned). Hemel says that he happens "to think very highly of this one" and Ronnie warns him that he needs to be careful with her, because of her overprotective father.
The film switches over to Christine's lock keeper father, Joe (Hugh Griffith), shouting at a young man whom he has pinned to the floor, evidently having been fighting with him. When he goes back into the lock cottage, his daughter starts a heated conversation about his overprotective behaviour, which he counters by saying he doesn't want her to "get tied up with one of that lot off the canal" The argument is cut short by the arrival of Ronnie and Hemmel at the lock.
Hemmel gives Ronnie some money and tells him to "keep him (Joe) lashed up 'till closing time" and Ronnie and Joe go off to the pub, leaving Christine and Hemel alone. This is apparently the pattern for Hemel and Christine's liaisons.
While at the pub, the only way Ronnie is able to keep Joe from going back to the house (ergo discovering Hemel and Christine) is by challenging his ability to handle drink. This turns into a full blown competition that all the pub takes part in.
Meanwhile, Christine (who knows she is pregnant) questions Hemel about whether he ever wants children. Hemel answers the affirmative, but this turns into a row as to whether he would leave the canal for it. This is cut short by Hemel realising how quiet the nearby pub has gone.
Back at the pub Joe is the only person left awake after the drinking contest. He has won after drinking 29 pints and Ronnie is left slumped on the bar, with the rest of the pub also asleep in various positions.
Joe leaves the pub and shouts "I can out-drink any man on this canal!", alerting Hemel and Christine of his imminent return. After a close call, Hemel makes it back to the boats without detection.
The next morning a severely hungover Joe is being berated by Christine for drinking so much. She leaves the room to continue her work, and is shown to be feeling faint. There is the sound of breaking crockery and Joe finds her unconscious.
The doctor is called and her pregnancy is revealed to Joe, who manages to ascertain from her (amidst the argument) that the father of the child is one of the boatmen.
Meanwhile; Hemel and Ronnie have made it to Birmingham. Hemel is shown with yet another woman on his arm and Ronnie is, as usual, without one at all.
In order to find the father Joe drains the pound and makes a bomb and rigs it to the lockgates, promising to hold up traffic until the guilty party is found and threatening to blow up the gates if anyone tries to touch them.
Ronnie and Hemel are bringing the boats back and come across the backed up traffic. They go to find out whats happened and find out Christine is pregnant. They are about to back the boats up and run away when Christine is heard pleading with some boatwomen to let her go. Hemel rushes in to defend her and the boatwomen pick up on his attitude to Christine, putting two and two together. Christine adamantly states that she wont marry him because she doesn't want to live on the boats.
Joe comes forward and, after giving Hemel his blessing to marry Christine, punches him.
Hemel is shown in a variety of land based jobs before the wedding, each one ending in him being fired. He is seen obviously missing the canals.
Ronnie is bringing the boats through one day and Christine runs to meet him, and finds out that the boats are to be signed off in eighteen months. Christine takes pity on Hemel and enlists Ronnie's help.
On Hemel and Christine's wedding day; Hemel is still upset by being on the land, although he is very happy to be with Christine. After cutting the cake, Christine tells him that she has a present for him and leads him outside. Banstead and Bellerophon, freshly painted with Hemel and Christine's names and gaily decorated, are tied up outside and Christine tells Hemel she wants to work the boats with him until the end of carrying eighteen months later.
The film ends with Christine and Hemel going into the butty's cabin while Ronnie sighs and takes over the boats as he's always done.
Cast
- Harry H. CorbettHarry H. CorbettHarry H. Corbett OBE was an English actor.Corbett was best known for his starring role in the popular and long-running BBC Television sitcom Steptoe and Son in the 1960s and 70s...
as Hemel Pike - Hugh GriffithHugh GriffithHugh Emrys Griffith was a Welsh film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Griffith was born in Marianglas, Anglesey, Wales, the son of Mary and William Griffith. He was educated at Llangefni County School and attempted to gain entrance to university, but failed the English examination...
as Joe Turnbull - Eric SykesEric SykesEric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...
as The Mariner - Ronnie BarkerRonnie BarkerRonald William George "Ronnie" Barker, OBE was a British actor, comedian, writer, critic, broadcaster and businessman...
as Ronnie - Julia FosterJulia FosterJulia Foster is a British actress.Foster's credits include the films The Bargee with Harry H. Corbett, Alfie with Michael Caine, Half a Sixpence with Tommy Steele, and Percy with Hywel Bennett...
as Christine Turnbull - Miriam KarlinMiriam KarlinMiriam Karlin, OBE was a British actress who worked on screen for over 60 years. She was best known for her role as Paddy in The Rag Trade, a 1960s BBC and 1970s LWT sitcom , especially for her catchphrase "Everybody out!"...
as Nellie Marsh - Eric BarkerEric BarkerEric Leslie Barker born in Thornton Heath, Surrey, was an English comedy actor. He is most remembered for his roles in the popular British Carry On films.-Career:...
as Mr Parkes, the Foreman - Derek NimmoDerek NimmoDerek Robert Nimmo was an English character actor. He was particularly associated with upper-class "silly-ass" roles, and clerical roles.-Career:...
as Dr. Scott - Norman BirdNorman BirdNorman Bird was a British character actor. Often sporting a moustache and an air of worried resignation, he seemed to specialise in downtrodden roles...
as Albert Williams, the Waterways Supervisor - Richard BriersRichard BriersRichard David Briers, CBE is an English actor whose career has encompassed theatre, television, film and radio.He first came to prominence as George Starling in Marriage Lines in the 1960s, but it was in the following decade when he played Tom Good in the BBC sitcom The Good Life that he became a...
as Tomkins - Ronnie BrodyRonnie BrodyRonnie Brody was a British actor who appeared in many comedy television series and films.His film appearances included: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Carry On Loving and The Beatles film Help!....
as Ted Croxley - George A. CooperGeorge A. CooperGeorge A. Cooper is an English actor.One of his best-known roles was as the caretaker Mr. Griffiths in the long-running children's TV series Grange Hill...
as Mr Williams, Office Official - Ed DevereauxEd DevereauxEd Devereaux was an Australian actor, who lived in the UK for many years. He was best known for playing the part of "Matt Hammond" in the Australian children's television series Skippy. He was also involved in the series behind the scenes: Devereaux directed The Veteran , for which he received...
as Boat Man - Wally PatchWally PatchWally Patch was a British character actor, who had supporting roles in many films. He was born Walter Sidney Vinnicombe in Willesden, London on 26 September 1888...
as Bargee - Michael RobbinsMichael RobbinsMichael Anthony Robbins was a British actor known for his television work...
as Bargee - Jo RowbottomJo RowbottomJo Rowbottom is a British character actress, best known for guest roles in numerous British TV series, and as James Beck's wife in Romany Jones.-Selected television credits:*Dixon of Dock Green*Z-Cars*The Baron*Mogul...
as Cynthia - Una StubbsUna StubbsUna Stubbs is an English actress and former dancer who has appeared extensively on British television and in the theatre, and less frequently in films. She is particularly known for her roles in the sitcom Till Death Us Do Part and Aunt Sally in the children's series Worzel Gummidge.-Film and...
as Bridesmaid - Eileen WayEileen WayEileen Way was an English actress who appeared in many film and television roles in a career dating back to the 1930s....
as Onlooker - Rita WebbRita WebbRita Webb was an English character actress, mainly in comedy roles.Born Olive Webb in Willesden, Middlesex, England, she is best known for her appearances as a stooge for Benny Hill in his long-running Thames Television series...
as Onlooker - Patricia HayesPatricia HayesPatricia Lawlor Hayes, OBE was an English comedy actress.Hayes was born in Streatham, London. As a child Hayes attended Sacred Heart School in Wandsworth....
as Onlooker - Brian WildeBrian WildeBrian George Wilde was an English actor, best known for his roles in television comedy, including Mr Barrowclough in Porridge and "Foggy" Dewhurst in Last of the Summer Wine...
as Policeman - Godfrey WinnGodfrey WinnGodfrey Herbert Winn was a British journalist known as a columnist, and also a writer and actor.Born in Birmingham, England, he went to King Edward's School, Birmingham. His career as a theatre actor began as a boy actor at the Haymarket Theatre and appeared in many plays and films...
as Announcer