The Silent Passenger
Encyclopedia
The Silent Passenger is a British
black-and-white
film made in 1935
at Ealing Studios
, London
.
This was the first film outing for novelist Dorothy L. Sayers
' fictional amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey
. The Silent Passenger was an original story written by Sayers specifically for the screen but unfortunately her amateur sleuth turn out as a somewhat eccentric imbecile who solved murders in spite of himself.
A blackmail
er is murdered by the husband of one of his victims, a railroad detective Henry Camberley (Donald Wolfit), but it is the innocent John Ryder (John Loder) who is suspected of the murder when Camberley puts the dead body into his trunk. After making the casual acquaintance of Ryder, amateur detective, Lord Peter Wimsey (Peter Haddon) sets about proving his friend's innocence. All these events take place while on a train trip from London to the English Channel
, with Ryder acting as "bait" to flush out the real killer and solve the murder.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
film made in 1935
1935 in film
-Events:*Judy Garland signs a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer .*Seven year old Shirley Temple wins a special Academy Award.*The Bantu Educational Kinema Experiment started in order to educate the Bantu peoples.-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:...
at Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios
Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever since...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Synopsis
A detective mystery in which a lord sets out to prove that a man did not kill his wife's blackmailer.This was the first film outing for novelist Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers was a renowned English crime writer, poet, playwright, essayist, translator and Christian humanist. She was also a student of classical and modern languages...
' fictional amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey
Lord Peter Wimsey
Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey is a bon vivant amateur sleuth in a series of detective novels and short stories by Dorothy L. Sayers, in which he solves mysteries; usually, but not always, murders...
. The Silent Passenger was an original story written by Sayers specifically for the screen but unfortunately her amateur sleuth turn out as a somewhat eccentric imbecile who solved murders in spite of himself.
A blackmail
Blackmail
In common usage, blackmail is a crime involving threats to reveal substantially true or false information about a person to the public, a family member, or associates unless a demand is met. It may be defined as coercion involving threats of physical harm, threat of criminal prosecution, or threats...
er is murdered by the husband of one of his victims, a railroad detective Henry Camberley (Donald Wolfit), but it is the innocent John Ryder (John Loder) who is suspected of the murder when Camberley puts the dead body into his trunk. After making the casual acquaintance of Ryder, amateur detective, Lord Peter Wimsey (Peter Haddon) sets about proving his friend's innocence. All these events take place while on a train trip from London to the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
, with Ryder acting as "bait" to flush out the real killer and solve the murder.
Cast
- Peter HaddonPeter HaddonPeter Haddon was an English actor born in Rawtenstall, Lancashire, England.-Filmography:*The Second Mrs. Tanqueray – Sir George Orreyed*Moulin Rouge...
as Lord Peter Wimsey - John LoderJohn Loder (actor)John Loder was a British-American actor. He was born William John Muir Lowe in London.-Early life:Loder's father was General W. H. M. Lowe, the British officer to whom Patrick Pearse, the leader of the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin, Ireland, surrendered...
as John Ryder - Lilian OldlandLilian OldlandLilian Oldland was a British actress who appeared in more than twenty films between 1925 and 1935. Born in Gloucester in 1903, she made her film debut in The Secret Kingdom and was soon cast as a regular in the Bindle Series of films. In 1930 she changed her name to Mary Newland and was credited...
as Mollie Ryder (as Mary Newland) - Austin TrevorAustin TrevorAustin Trevor was a Belfast born actor who had a long career in British films and television.He was the first actor to play Agatha Christie's detective Hercule Poirot on screen in three British films during the early 1930s: Alibi , Black Coffee and Lord Edgware Dies...
as Inspector Parker - Donald WolfitDonald WolfitSir Donald Wolfit, KBE was a well-known English actor-manager.-Biography:Wolfit, who was "Woolfitt" at birth was born at New Balderton, near Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire and attended the Magnus Grammar School and made his stage début in 1920...
as Henry Camberley - Leslie PerrinsLeslie PerrinsLeslie Perrins was an English actor who often played villains. In his long career, he appeared in well over 60 films...
as Maurice Windermere - Aubrey MatherAubrey MatherAubrey Mather was an English character actor.Mather began his career on the stage in 1905. He debuted in London in Brewster's Millions in 1909 and on Broadway ten years later in Luck of the Navy. He eventually branched out to films, starting with Young Woodley in 1930...
as Bunter - Robb WiltonRobb WiltonRobb Wilton, born Robert Wilton Smith was an English comedian and comic actor who was famous for his filmed monologues in the 1930s and 1940s in which he played incompetent authority figures....
as Porter - Ralph TrumanRalph TrumanRalph Truman was an English actor, usually cast as either a villain or an authority figure. He possessed a distinguished speaking voice...
as Saunders - Frederick BurtwellFrederick BurtwellFrederick Burtwell was an English actor who featured in supporting roles in over 40 British films of the 1930s and 1940s.-Partial filmography:*Down Our Street * Just My Luck...
(uncredited) - Ann Codrington (uncredited)
- George De Warfaz (uncredited)
- Annie EsmondAnnie EsmondAnnie Esmond was a British film actress.Annie Esmond was born in Surrey, England on 27th September 1873. She made her stage debut in pantomime in Sheffield in 1891 and later appeared on the American as well as British stage for many years before going into silent films and later talkies...
(uncredited) - Dorice Fordred (uncredited)
- Vincent Holman (uncredited)
- Gordon McLeodGordon McLeod (actor)Gordon McLeod was an English actor, born Charles Gordon McLeod.His film appearances include Chance of a Lifetime and The Silent Passenger, but he is best known for his recurring appearance as the character Claud Eustace Teal in films such as The Saint Meets the Tiger.-Selected filmography:* A...
(uncredited) - Percy Rhodes (uncredited)