The Day They Robbed the Bank of England (1960)

London at the turn of the century in 1901. Three men is on a mission from the IRA to steal all the gold in the vaults of the Bank of England. Norgate, their leader, discovers the bank's ... See full summary »

Director:

John Guillermin

Writers:

John Brophy (novel), Howard Clewes (adaptation),

Stars:

Aldo Ray, Elizabeth Sellars, Peter O'Toole

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Aldo Ray	...	Charles Norgate
Elizabeth Sellars	...	Iris Muldoon
Peter O'Toole	...	Capt. Monty Fitch
Kieron Moore	...	Walsh
Albert Sharpe	...	Albert Tosher Sparrow
Joseph Tomelty	...	Cohoun
Wolf Frees	...	Dr. Hagen
John Le Mesurier	...	Green
Miles Malleson	...	Assistant Curator
Colin Gordon	...	Benge
Andrew Keir	...	Sergeant of the Guard
Hugh Griffith	...	O'Shea

Storyline

London at the turn of the century in 1901. Three men is on a mission from the IRA to steal all the gold in the vaults of the Bank of England. Norgate, their leader, discovers the bank's weak spot: an old forgotten sewer straight under the vaults. But they have to deal with captain Fitch, a young but suspicious bank guard.

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Plot Keywords:

bank | vault | sewer | museum | gold theft | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 September 1960 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bankraub des Jahrhunderts

Filming Locations:

MGM British Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Summit Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

85 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.00 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In his film career, Albert Sharpe only made twelve films, among them the MGM musical Brigadoon. This was his final film.

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Connections

Featured in Peter O'Toole: Live from the TCM Classic Film Festival (2012)

User Reviews

A Tunnel Job Requires A Miner

For a chance to see Peter O'Toole before Lawrence Of Arabia, I would highly recommend The Day They Robbed The Bank Of England. It's a period caper film set at the turn of the last century about some Fenians attempting to rob the Bank Of England itself.

The Irish cause as personified by Hugh Griffith as acquired the services of an American Irish patriot in the person of Aldo Ray. Among his other qualifications is that of a miner if a tunnel job is needed and he surveys it and says it is.

He also cultivates Coldstream guardsman Peter O'Toole who is glad to have a new drinking companion and he furnishes all kinds of information about the bank and its security. He also begins to suspect something is terribly amiss at the bank though he can't put his finger on it.

Ray's crew consists of Albert Sharpe in his farewell performance who's more of a hindrance than a help, Elizabeth Sellars with whom he has a past and Kieron Moore who Sellars has a present. That does not make for a smooth running operation.

John Guillermin who later directed such films I liked as Death On The Nile and Guns At Batasi directed The Day They Robbed The Bank Of England at a really nice pace and brought out some good characterizations from his players. As for the job itself will it succeed is up to both the caprices of men and politics. Hugh Griffith who is one of my favorite actors and who has the wildest most expressive eyes ever in cinema represents the politics of the Irish cause and quite well.

A very nice film, The Day They Robbed The Bank Of England and for his fans a wonderful opportunity to see Peter O'Toole before he became a star.