Castle in the Air *** (1952, David Tomlinson, Helen Cherry, Margaret Rutherford, Barbara Kelly, A E Matthews, Patricia Dainton) – Classic Movie Review 13,576

The lightly appealing 1952 British comedy film Castle in the Air is based on a play by Alan Melville, and stars David Tomlinson, Helen Cherry, Margaret Rutherford and Barbara Kelly.

Director Henry Cass’s 1952 slightly sluggish but appealing enough British comedy film Castle in the Air is based on a play by Alan Melville, and stars David Tomlinson, Helen Cherry, Margaret Rutherford, Barbara Kelly, A E Matthews, and Patricia Dainton.

Castle in the Air is a very gentle, slightly hesitant, mildly amusing film of Alan Melville’s stage farce about an impoverished Scottish lord, the Earl of Locharne (David Tomlinson), , the owner of a run-down Scottish castle that he has turned into hotel, alas unsuccessful.

Both his wealthy American cousin, divorcee Mrs Clodfelter Dunne (Barbara Kelly) and the British National Coal Board are after his castle. She wants to buy it, but the Coal Board want to requisition it. Meanwhile, eccentric boarder Miss Nicholson (Margaret Rutherford), a genealogy expert, bids to show that the Earl is in fact the true heir to the Scots throne.

Despite the rather slack pace, gaps in entertainment value and longueurs between laughs, there is still a lot to enjoy here. Above all, though, the vintage jovial cast ensures considerable purrs of pleasure, with David Tomlinson and Barbara Kelly naturally entertaining, Helen Cherry, Patricia Dainton and especially A E Matthews bringing much pleasure, and Margaret Rutherford a total delight.

Also in the rich cast are Brian Oulton, Ewan Roberts, Clive Morton, Gordon Jackson, Russell Waters, Stringer Davis (as the hall porter), Winifred Willard, John Harvey, Pat Sandys, Esme Beringer, David Hannaford, Archie Duncan, Norman Macowa, and Paul Blake.

The screenplay is by Edward Dryhurst and Alan Melville based on Melville’s 1949 stage play. The film is made by Hallmark/ Associated British Picture Corporation at the ABPC company’s Elstree Studios.

It is filmed in black and white but a colorised version is available.

Stringer Davis married Margaret Rutherford in 1945 after a 15-year courtship, so devoted to one another that Davis was always on set when his wife was filming. They appeared in more than 20 films together, with Rutherford putting it into her contract that Davis had a part in her film.

Stringer Davis and Margaret Rutherford.

© Derek Winnert 2025 – Classic Movie Review 13,576

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