Sir Henry at Rawlinson End (film)

Sir Henry at Rawlinson End is a 1980 British film based on the eponymous character created by Vivian Stanshall. It starred Trevor Howard as Sir Henry and Stanshall himself as Henry's brother Hubert. Unusually, the film was released in sepia-toned monochrome. After a long wait, while the film obtained cult status, Sir Henry at Rawlinson End was finally released on DVD in 2006. The bonuses include a commentary track with the director, Steve Roberts, as well as Sheila Reid (Aunt Florrie) and Jeremy Child (Peregrine Maynard), as well as a picture gallery, synopsis, the script of unfilmed scenes, and actor biographies.

Synopsis

As complex as the mind of its creator, Vivian Stanshall, the plot of Sir Henry at Rawlinson End revolves around attempts to exorcise the ghost of Hubert, the brother of Sir Henry (Trevor Howard). Hubert was accidentally killed in a drunken duck-shooting incident whilst escaping from an illicit tryst. Amongst the eccentric family members, mad friends and grudgingly loyal servants involved are the eternally knitting Aunt Florrie, the tapeworm-obsessed Mrs. E, Lady Phillipa of Staines (Liz Smith), who enjoys the odd 'small' sherry and the ever-present Old Scrotum, Sir Henry's wrinkled retainer.

Cast

• Trevor Howard – Sir Henry Rawlinson
• Patrick Magee – Slodden
• Denise Coffey – Mrs E
• Vivian Stanshall – Hubert Rawlinson
• Sheila Reid – Lady Rawlinson
• Suzanne Danielle – Candice Rawlinson
• J. G. Devlin – Old Scrotum
• Gary Waldhorn – Max
• Daniel Gerroll – Ralph Rawlinson
• Ben Aris – Lord Tarquin of Staines
• Liz Smith – Lady Philippa
• Harry Fowler – Buller Bullethead
• Simon Jones – Joachim
• Jeremy Child – Peregrin Maynard
• Ian McDiarmid – Reg Smeeton

Press

'It's impossible to do justice to the film's arrant and quite unique lunacy.' – The Financial Times

'Sir Henry is a comic masterpiece.' – NME

'This extraordinary film is one of the most haphazard British comedies I've seen. It is also a long time since I've laughed so much... a cult in the making.' – The Guardian

'You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll jab your eyes with fingers still trembling from the trauma of being made a child again. You'll jab your eyes just to check you've just seen what you think you've seen.... Sir Henry is a film to be experienced as closely and seriously and often as possible, a work of art that should sink under the skin and into the bones and do its good work like vitamins and (Captain Beefheart's) Trout Mask Replica. I can't recommend it highly enough so I won't even start. It's out there if you want it. And in here (tap skull and chest) whether you want it or not, Englander pig dog. A talking picture. And what could be more wonderful than that?' – Plan B

'It wouldn't be a million miles wide of the mark to call "Sir Henry at Rawlinson End" a missing link between Monty Python and "Withnail & I", but as the brainchild of Vivian Stanshall - pack leader of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band - it has a place in the pantheon of sophisticated English silliness all of its own.' ***** – Time Out

'Although it truly is in the grand wazoo of weird, the film remains surprisingly unknown and unscreened since its release in 1980. I remember a grainy VHS furtively passed around at school, and even this clear as a bell DVD version feels a bit naughty... The movie equivalent of cheese before bed, this film guarantees nightmares, but in a good way.' – The Big Issue

External links

• Sir Henry at Rawlinson End at the Internet Movie Database