Elstree Calling

British International Pictures

Industry	Film production
Headquarters	Elstree , United Kingdom
Products	Films

Elstree Calling is a 1930 British comedy musical film produced at Elstree Studios and co-directed by Adrian Brunel alongside Alfred Hitchcock.

Synopsis

Presented as "A Cine-Radio Revue," this extravagant musical film revue serves as Britain's answer to American productions such as Paramount on Parade (1930) and The Hollywood Revue of 1929. The narrative is minimal, structured around a television broadcast format that includes 19 comedic and musical sketches. These segments are connected through recurring jokes about an aspiring Shakespearean actor and humorous technical difficulties experienced by a viewer trying to watch the show on TV.

Production background

Alfred Hitchcock contributed to the film by directing comedic interludes featuring a character struggling to "tune in" the revue on his television, with repeated failures caused by unnecessary adjustments. This theme was timely in the UK, reflecting the influence of John Logie Baird's pioneering mechanical television developments during the 1920s. The ensemble performances were choreographed and staged by André Charlot, Paul Murray, and Jack Hulbert.

Four scenes were enhanced with the Pathécolor stencil tinting technique, mimicking Hollywood's early use of Technicolor. The movie was produced by British International Pictures (BIP) and primarily featured musical and comedic acts drawn from popular stage productions of the era, introduced by host Tommy Handley. Although it did not match the grandeur of Hollywood productions, Elstree Calling is significant for Hitchcock’s creative input and may be the earliest film to incorporate direct references to television—predating the BBC’s official broadcasts by six years.

Cast

Listed in order of appearance:

• Will Fyffe
• Cicely Courtneidge
• Jack Hulbert
• Tommy Handley
• Lily Morris
• Helen Burnell
• The Berkoffs
• Bobbie Comber
• Lawrence Green
• Ivor McLaren
• Anna May Wong
• Jameson Thomas
• John Longden
• Donald Calthrop
• Gordon Harker
• Hannah Jones
• Teddy Brown
• The Chocolate Kiddies trio, known as The Three Eddies: Shakey (Clarence) Beasley, Chick (Layburn) Horsey, Tiny (Earle) Ray
• The Balalaika Choral Orchestra

Supported by:

• The Aldelphi Girls
• The Charlot Girls

Also appearing:

• Gordon Begg portraying Shakespeare
• Nathan Shacknovsky
• John Stuart

Copyright and home video status

Similar to other British films directed by Hitchcock, Elstree Calling has been subject to widespread unauthorized distribution on home video formats. As of early 2019, the sole officially authorized and preserved edition is available on DVD through Network Distributing in the United Kingdom.

See also

• List of early color feature films

External links

• Alfred Hitchcock Collectors’ Guide: Elstree Calling at Brenton Film