Old Bones of the River
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Old Bones of the River
| image = Old bones river.JPG
| caption =
| director = Marcel Varnel
| producer =
| writer = Marriott Edgar
Val Guest
J. O. C. Orton
| narrator =
| starring = Will Hay
Graham Moffatt
Moore Marriott
| music =
| cinematography = Arthur Crabtree
| editing = R. E. Dearing
Alfred Roome
| distributor = General Film Distributors
| released = {{film date|1938|12}}
| runtime = 90 minutes
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}
Old Bones of the River is a comedy film released in 1938 starring British actor Will Hay with Moore Marriott and Graham Moffatt and directed by Marcel Varnel, based on the characters created by Edgar Wallace.
The film is a spoof of the 1935 movie Sanders of the River.{{cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/447266/index.html|title=Old Bones of the River (1938)|last=Collinson|first=Gavin|work=BFI Screenonline|publisher=British Film Institute|access-date=9 July 2017}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.britishpictures.com/arch_o1.html|title=ARCHIVE Ol - Once: British films of the 30s, 40s and 50s|website=www.britishpictures.com}}
Synopsis
Hay plays Professor Benjamin Tibbetts, representative of the Teaching & Welfare Institution for the Reformation of Pagans (otherwise known as T.W.I.R.P for short), and dedicated to spreading education amongst the natives of colonial Africa.
Professor Tibbetts is the uncle of Wallace's character Lt Tibbetts, known as "Bones", so the Professor is referred to as "Old Bones".
As he arrives (still trying to learn the native language via recordings), Professor Tibbetts is tricked into sneaking a gin still into the country by Prince M'Bapi, half-brother of Bosambo, chief of the Ochori tribe. The steamer that brings him takes Commissioner Sanders on leave, with Captain Hamilton taking over his duties.
Later, Tibbetts makes his way to Kombooli High, where his students wear Eton collars alongside their native garb. Tibbetts dons a mortarboard but wears safari shorts under his gown owing to the heat.
When Hamilton falls ill with a dose of malaria, Tibbetts is forced to take over his duties, which include collecting the taxes. Travelling upriver by canoe, he finds Sanders' paddlesteamer the Zaire, operated by Harbottle (Moore Marriott) and Albert (Graham Moffatt).
M'Bapi leads a revolt against Bosambo, and the threesome rescue a baby from death by sacrifice.
Cast
- Lucius Blake{{Cite news |last=Khomami |first=Nadia |date=2023-10-02 |title=Overlooked black actor may have been most prolific in early British cinema |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/oct/02/overlooked-black-actor-may-have-been-most-prolific-in-early-british-cinema |access-date=2023-10-02 |issn=0261-3077}}
- Will Hay as Professor Benjamin Tibbetts
- Moore Marriott as Jerry Harbottle
- Graham Moffatt as Albert
- Robert Adams as Bosambo
- Jack London as M'Bapi
- Wyndham Goldie as Commissioner Sanders
- Jack Livesey as Captain Hamilton
Production
The film was one of several Hay made for producer Ted Black at Gainsborough.{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-british-film-moguls-ted-black/|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|date=1 December 2024|access-date=1 December 2024|title=Forgotten British Film Moguls: Ted Black}}
Notes
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0030518|Old Bones of the River}}
{{Marcel Varnel}}
{{Marriott Edgar}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Old Bones of the River}}
Category:1930s English-language films
Category:British black-and-white films
Category:English-language comedy films
Category:Films directed by Marcel Varnel
Category:Films set in the British Empire
Category:Films with screenplays by Marriott Edgar
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