Joan Carries On ... as Joan Fussey

 

This blog is part of a new regular series on Carry On Blogging. I'm going to attempt to blog about each of Joan Sims' wonderful roles in the Carry On films. Joan was the most prolific of all the actresses involved in the series, clocking up 24 films. Indeed, only Kenneth Williams made more Carry Ons. 

Today I am going to write about Joan's role in one of the most famous, popular and successful films in the series: Carry On Camping. The second film to be made in 1968, both Camping and Khyber were the highest grossing films of the year - Camping beating Khyber to the top spot. Camping is of course a contemporary set film following Khyber's period costume romp. Joan is again at the forefront of the action in Camping and again plays opposite Sid James. The producers had cottoned on to the pairs' chemistry following their scenes together in Cowboy and from then on Sid and Joan would work regularly together in the series.

 

The basic premise of Carry On Camping is a group of misfits who journey to and then descend on Peter Butterworth's Paradise Camp Site. As well as the girls from Chayste Place finishing school (headed by Kenneth Williams and Hattie Jacques), Charles Hawtrey's Charlie Muggins and Peter and Harriet Potter (Terry Scott and Betty Marsden), Sid Boggle and Bernie Lugg take their girlfriends Joan and Anthea (Joan and Dilys Laye) for a holiday in the outdoors. Of course Sid has a scheme and that scheme is to encourage their girlfriends to indulge in a nudist holiday. Crossed wires are involved however and the campsite Sid thinks is nudist turns out to be anything else but. Soon Sid and Bernie are distracted by the arrival of Babs and Fanny from Chayste Place before they realise they are better off with Joan and Anthea at the end of the picture.

So much of Carry On Camping has made its way into the public consciousness and it has become a rights of passage film for many of us. Much of the publicity for the film focused on Barbara's bra-popping exercise scene however Joan's role is still worth checking out. On the face of it, Joan Fussey is just another nagging girlfriend however there is much more to it than that. I absolutely love the foursome set up of Sid, Bernard, Joan and Dilys. They all work so well together and the scenes of them in the car together are a joy. You can tell the four actors all got on and had worked together many times before. Joan and Dilys in particular were extremely believable as best friends, probably because the two actresses were life-long friends in real life. There is great chemistry and warmth in their scenes together.

 

The first time we meet Joan in Camping is right at the start of the film. Sid has taken the gang to the pictures to see a nudist film. While Sid laps it up, Bernie is distinctly uncomfortable and Dilys spends the scene trying not to be sick! Joan is vociferous in her disapproval of the proceedings and the dialogue between Joan and Sid is superb from the off! They really hit the ground running and establish the backbone of the film in the first few minutes. I also love the early scene at Joan's mothers' house when she warns the girls about the men they are socialising with. Amelia Bayntun was a wonderful supporting actress in the Carry Ons and her role as Mrs Fussey was her first part in the series. She works well with the two girls and the kitchen scene is straight out of a domestic sitcom. 

Sadly Joan is rather sidelined once Barbara comes on the scene however towards the end of the film Sid sees the error of his ways. The ending of Camping is sublime as Joan and Dilys make the blokes see that what they really want has been right under their noses the whole time. As Dilys sees Joan's mother off after a surprise visit, the two couples finally get down to business!

 

Joan's role in Carry On Camping is far less showy and much more down to earth than her previous part in Khyber as Lady Joan Ruff-Diamond. That is the beauty of Joan's roles in the series though. Her versatility meant she was equally adept at period roles and contemporary set films - she played dowdy and glam, posh and common and all were believable and perfectly pitched. 

Are you a fan of Joan's role in Carry On Camping? 



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Whatever Happened To ... Ameila Bayntun?

Amelia Bayntun is yet another instantly recognisable face from the rogues gallery that made up the gang of recurring supporting actors in the Carry On films. Amelia played very small roles in several of the films but her characters were always memorable. As with so many of these wonderful performers, little is known or has ever been written about Amelia.

So what do we know? Well Amelia Bayntun was born in Bristol on the 31st March 1919. She made her professional debut in 1937 when she joined the Bristol Unity Players. During the Second World War, Amelia toured with Stars in Battledress, performing in countries such as Italy and Austria, entertaining troops until the end of hostilities in 1945. This was often a deeply rewarding but also very dangerous gig for an actor. 

Amelia Bayntun had her first major success in 1960 when she joined the cast of Sparrers Can't Sing on the London stage. The play originated at Joan Littlewood's Theatre Royal, Stratford East and the film version made a star of Barbara Windsor. Two years later, another theatre role came her way when she played the role of Mrs Blitzein in Blitz! This was a Lionel Bart musical which focussed on the Jewish community in the East End of London during the war. It co-starred Bob Grant (later to appear in On The Buses) and future playwright Tom Kempinski (who was once married to Carry On actress Margaret Nolan). Amelia played the role of Mrs Blitzein for over 500 performances. 

Most of Amelia's career was on television and in film. While never achieving huge success or big roles, she did appear in some well known films and television programmes. Her earliest television credit came with three episodes of Emergency Ward 10 in 1960. Over the course of the next decade, Bayntun went on to appear in two episodes of the Wednesday Play; Mrs Crupp in a 1966 production of David Copperfield;  Dixon of Dock Green; Z Cars and The Dick Emery Show. She also had a recurring role as Ada in the series Albert! which ran from 1971 - 1972.

On the big screen, Amelia Bayntun had small roles in the James Bond film Thunderball in 1965 and the children's classic The Railway Children in 1970. Her biggest film successes came with five supporting turns in the Carry On films. Amelia's most famous Carry On part was probably her first, as Joan's mother Mrs Fussey in Camping, released in 1968. This was followed with a blink and you'll miss her appearance as "Corset Lady" in Carry On Loving in 1970. The following year, Amelia had an uncredited role as Mrs Spragg in At Your Convenience, catching an eye full of Vic Spanner in his pants! 

Later in 1971, Amelia played the hard of hearing Mrs Jenkins in a very funny scene opposite Terry Scott's Dr Prodd in Carry On Matron. Amelia Bayntun's final Carry On appearance came in the Spring of 1972. She played Mrs Tuttle, the over-protective mother of Charles Hawtrey. Appearing at the start of the film, she sends Eustace off on his package holiday, telling him always to put plenty of paper down first! 

Sadly that was it for Amelia and Carry On. She was a memorable addition to each of the films in which she appeared. For reasons that remain unknown, Amelia did not make any further acting appearances after 1973. And there the trail goes cold until her death many years later.

Amelia Bayntun passed away in January 1988 in Islington, North London. She was 68 years old. 

If anyone knows anything more about the life and career of Amelia Bayntun, do get in touch. 

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