Five Reasons Why I Love … Carry On Up The Jungle

Carry On Up The Jungle has never really been at the top of the pile for me but on watching it again after a long time this afternoon, it really made me laugh. Sure, it's not necessarily a classic of the series and several key figures are missing but it's still hilarious in places and gives us some wonderful performances from a handful of brilliant comedy actors.

Although almost completely set in a studio and featuring certain elements which probably wouldn't be condoned these days, it still stands up reasonably well. With a cast featuring Frankie Howerd, Joan Sims, Terry Scott, Bernard Bresslaw, Sid James and Kenneth Connor, what's not to love? Anyway, perhaps it's time for me to reappraise Carry On Up The Jungle, so here, without further ado are five reasons why I've come to love this innuendo-laden journey up the Limpopo! 

Francis is back!

Frankie Howerd was a stand out reason for Carry On Doctor's success two years earlier. Without a doubt Frankie is the very best guest star the Carry Ons ever had. Although he made other films and was considered a good comic actor, Frankie was at heart a comedian, a stand up and a raconteur. The Carry Ons fitted him like a glove. While ostensibly playing characters in both his Carry Ons, Frankie is essentially just giving us a bit of himself, as it were. He sticks to the narrative occasionally, but all our favourite Howerd expressions and catchphrases are there as he consistently and rather beautifully breaks away from the script in a way no other actor could. In Jungle, Frankie makes a triumphant return and reunites with familiar co-stars Joan Sims and Sid James and also forms a deliciously camp and bickering double act with a returning Kenneth Connor. Fabulous stuff. And speaking of Connor…

The return of a Carry On Original…

After a five year break away to pursue other projects, Kenneth Connor rejoined the Carry On team for Jungle and stayed pretty much until the end of the original run in 1978. Kenneth coming back to the team should not be understated - he was there at the very beginning and was the main stand out star of the first six or seven films in the series. The beauty of Kenneth's return in Jungle is that he pretty much picks up as he left off. He's slightly older yes, but Connor is still playing the rather frustrated little man he played in the likes of Teacher, Constable and Regardless. As a major link to past successes, Kenneth Connor is a priceless piece of casting. As I've already mentioned, Kenneth forms a wonderful double act with Frankie Howerd as a pair of bickering ornithologists and it's just magic!

Man. Woman. Bang! 

The role of the fairly mute Tarzan-like character in Jungle was originally mooted for Jim Dale, then the series' leading man and dashing romantic lead. Jim had started to branch out and spread his wings the year before after a concurrent run of starring roles in the Carry Ons. Returning for Again Doctor earlier in 1969, Jim received the script for Jungle and turned it down both due to the lack of dialogue and his renewed desire to do more live theatre. Sadly the cinema-goers of 1970 were therefore denied the spectacle of lovely Jim in a loin cloth but full kudos to Terry Scott for taking on the part of 'Jungle Boy' and really makes it his own. The childlike, innocent character is all Terry's making and is so different from his other characters like Peter Potter in Camping and Dr Prodd in Matron. It's a classic portrayal and despite the fact he was in reality three years older than Joan Sims (who was playing his mother), if you can suspend belief for ninety minutes, it's a highlight of the film. 

Pinewood invention at its best

Looking at it now, it's fairly obvious Carry On Up The Jungle is entirely set in a Pinewood Studios soundstage. The slightly naff attempts at blending real archive footage of jungle wildlife don't really cut it but do provide laughs all of their own. Despite this, credit must be given to the Pinewood technicians and set designers for creating such a lush looking set. The campsite, the jungle backgrounds and particularly the lovely lagoon used for June's meeting with Jungle Boy, are all brilliantly conceived and really make the film. You soon forget that they're not out on location and join in with all the usual highjinks. 

A late arrival who steals the film

Although briefly glimpsed half asleep in the audience at the very beginning of the film, Charles Hawtrey leaves it pretty late to make his first proper appearance. Charles comes into his own in the last twenty minutes of the film after Sid, Frankie and the gang are kidnapped by Valerie Leon's all female tribe. Unveiled as Tonka The Great, it must be one of Charles' best entrances as from all the build up you expect anyone other than Hawtrey and his Oh Hello! Add in Joan's shock and Charles' line "Oh my God, it's the wife!" and you have a classic Carry On moment. Charles is on fine form, twinkling away mischievously and sharing some delightful scenes with Joan Sims. It's a relatively small role for a leading team member but such was the power of Charles Hawtrey that he could wander in in the last half hour and pretty much steal the film! 


So there you have it, five reasons why I think Carry Up The Jungle is a keeper. I hope you've enjoyed it on ITV3 this afternoon, despite all the cuts! 



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Two more Carry Ons to enjoy this weekend!

Once again ITV3 and Film4 are showing one Carry On a piece this coming weekend. The early days of the film series are represented by the 1963 swashbuckler Carry On Jack on Film4 while ITV3 are going Up The Jungle with Frankie Howerd. 

So set your devices to record, sit back and enjoy some wonderfully funny films from a bygone era. More details and further reading on the two films can be found below:

Saturday 6 October, 15.10 - Carry On Up The Jungle (1970) - ITV3

Carry On Up the Jungle is the nineteenth in the series to be made, released in 1970. The film marked Frankie Howerd;s second and final appearance in the series. He stars alongside regular players Joan Sims, Sid James, Terry Scott, Bernard Bresslaw and Charles Hawtrey. Kenneth Connor returns to the series for the first time since Carry On Cleo six years earlier and would now feature in almost every entry up to Emmannuelle  in 1978. Jacki Piper makes the first of her four appearances in the series. This movie is a send-up of the classic Tarzan films.

Further reading: Carry On Blogging Interview: Jacki Piper 
Carry On Blogging Interview: Valerie Leon 

Sunday 7 October, 16.55 - Carry On Jack (1963) - Film4

Probably one of my lesser favourites, this swash buckling yarn from the early 1960s marked a return to colour for the Carry Ons and also saw the films take on a period subject matter for the very first time. Until this point, every series entry had been firmly based in the present day so for the loyal cinema-going audiences this must have been quite a shock! Jack, written by Talbot Rothwell, is also fairly light both on innuendos and familiar cast members. Indeed of the regular team at this stage, only Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey appear. Jim Dale, back for his second brief cameo role after Cabby earlier the same year, was yet to become a main presence however his appearance is a funny one and most welcome. Grabbing most of the action are Juliet Mills and Bernard Cribbins and very good they are too. Both new to the films, this was Juliet's only Carry On, despite appearing in two other films for Peter Rogers, Nurse On Wheels and Twice Round The Daffodils. Jack does feature some stunning actors in supporting roles, namely Donald Houston, Percy Herbert, Cecil Parker and Patrick Cargill.

Further reading: Carry On Blogging: A Change of Tack about Carry On Jack

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Bernie Carries On … As Upsidaisi

Over the past year I have written a series of blogs covering each of the roles of some of our favourite Carry On stars. I began my looking back at each film role played by the three leading ladies in the series - Joan Sims, Hattie Jacques and Barbara Windsor - and most recently I've written about all of Kenneth Connor's Carry On performances in the run up to the great man's centenary. 

Today I am continuing a new strand of this series by turning the spotlight on that gentle giant of British comedy, the late Bernard Bresslaw. Probably one of the most under-rated actors in the main team, Bernard was a part of the series for ten years and fourteen films, tackling a superb range of crumbling villains and delightfully dimwitted foils to the likes of Sid James and Kenneth Cope. Bernard enjoyed a long career away from the Carry Ons and spent much of his later life wowing audiences in legitimate theatre. However he will forever to remembered for his clutch of hilarious Carry On supporting turns. 

Bernard joined the Carry On team in the mid 1960s and along with Peter Butterworth was the last main team member to join the gang. Along with Butterworth, Bernard played a series of smaller, supporting roles to begin with before graduating to major roles towards the end of the decade. Bernard fitted in effortlessly with the rest of the team and he's the kind of actor who is working hard but making it look oh so easy. A quiet, erudite, thoughtful family man away from the film studios, I often think Bresslaw has never received the credit he's due as like Connor and Butterworth, he didn't ever seek the limelight or splash his life over the front pages.

So today, we'll continue this new series looking at Bernard's role as the jungle guide Upsidaisi in the 1969 film Carry On Up The Jungle.

The basic plot of Jungle involves a group of rather eccentric Brits being guided through the African jungle by the unreliable and very Sid-like Sid James as Bill Boosey. Frankie Howerd and Kenneth Connor play a couple of bickering ornithologists while Bernard Bresslaw also appears as the native guide Upsidasi. Joan Sims plays Lady Evelyn, an upper class English woman looking for her husband and son, lost in the jungle on a previous expedition. Playing opposite Joan is a new young actress to the Carry Ons, the lovely Jacki Piper. Jacki's character June is rather prim and proper at the start of the film but soon enjoys an awakening opposite Terry Scott's Jungle Boy (!)

Of course Terry's character turns out to be Joan's long-lost son (despite Scott being three years older than Sims!) and a late entry from Charles Hawtrey confirms he's Joan's husband Walter. However these days Walter goes under the name of King Tonka, father of countless! This provides Hawtrey with one of his best entrances in the entire run. As always with the Carry Ons, the plot is of little importance, it's the performances we're interested in. Joan takes centre stage for much of the action and is superb opposite her mostly male co-stars. 

Jungle may not be one of my all time favourite Carry Ons but it does have its strong points. Chief amongst them is the central performance from returning guest star Frankie Howerd in his second and final Carry On. Frankie forms a delightful double act with another important returnee, Kenneth Connor. There are also plenty of prime Sid and Joan moments and both Valerie Leon and a debuting Jacki Piper have perhaps their best roles in the series. And who can forget Charles Hawtrey, turning up for the last twenty minutes of action and nearly stealing the film.

So what about Bernard Bresslaw? As I've suggested previously, Bernard never put in a bad performance and was always the strong and stable supporting player. Although Up The Jungle has a smaller overall cast than usual, the majority of the action is shared out between Frankie, Sid and Joan and Bernie perhaps doesn't get as much screen time as he should. As bumbling guide Upsidaisi, Bernard is back playing his stock in trade rather slow witted yet well meaning characters. He does form a satisfying double act with Sid James' big game hunter Bill Boosey and the two old mates ham it up magnificently throughout the picture.

Perhaps Bernie's role as a native in Jungle might raise a few eyebrows in these more enlightened modern times. We're living in a very different country from the England of 1969 and while many people wouldn't have given it a second thought at the time, Bresslaw in dark make up today could quite justifiably be frowned upon. However the saving grace of all this is Bernard's very gentle, innocent performance. He is nothing but endearing and you can't help but love him and his portrayal. Apparently, according to Jacki Piper, Bernard went to the lengths of learning all his commands in the authentic local language only to find that the extras he was working with didn't have a clue what he was talking about! Talk about dedication to your art!

Bernard's Upsidaisi is completely useless as a guide and his continual failure to bring home anything appetising for supper leads Sid to break out yet another tin of corned beef for the completely unaware British travellers. Bernard is perhaps most closely resembling his Army Game character here in this film, although there is also a strong resemblance to his role as part of Sid's gang in the classic crime caper, Too Many Crooks. Upsidaisi remains the innocent amongst the characters and stays completely unaware of all the tent hopping antics amongst the sex mad Brits. 

Bernie's big moment comes once the British have been kidnapped by Valerie Leon's all female tribe, desperate to find eligible men to continue on their line. Upsidaisi manages to escape and soon summons help from his animal friends in the jungle. Before that he goes undercover to inform Sid's Boosey of his plans. This being a Carry On, Bernie drags up as one of Valerie's sexy female fighters, with hilarious results! Unlike some of his fellow male stars, Bresslaw always seemed to relish appearing in drag in a Carry On. And he never disappoints! 

In a film which is pretty dominated by big comedy performances from big comedy stars, Bernard could quite easily be lost in the amongst the action. Such is the talent of the man that he still finds moments to shine.

So those are my thoughts on Bernard's role in Carry On Up The Jungle. Stay tuned for my next blog in this series, as I look back at Bernard's role in Carry On Loving!

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