Carry On Matron (1972)

A gang of thieves plan to make their fortune by stealing a shipment of contraceptive pills from Finisham maternity hospital. They assume disguises and infiltrate the hospital, but ... See full summary »

Director:

Gerald Thomas

Writer:

Talbot Rothwell (screenplay)

Stars:

Sidney James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sidney James	...	Sid Carter
Kenneth Williams	...	Sir Bernard Cutting
Charles Hawtrey	...	Dr. Francis A. Goode
Joan Sims	...	Mrs. Tidey
Hattie Jacques	...	Matron
Bernard Bresslaw	...	Ernie Bragg
Kenneth Cope	...	Cyril Carter
Terry Scott	...	Dr. Prodd
Barbara Windsor	...	Nurse Susan Ball
Kenneth Connor	...	Mr. Tidey
Jacki Piper	...	Sister
Bill Maynard	...	Freddy
Patsy Rowlands	...	Evelyn Banks
Derek Francis	...	Arthur
Amelia Bayntun	...	Mrs. Jenkins

Storyline

A gang of thieves plan to make their fortune by stealing a shipment of contraceptive pills from Finisham maternity hospital. They assume disguises and infiltrate the hospital, but everything doesn't go according to plan. The hypochondriac consultant Sir Bernard Cutting, Matron and the doctors and nurses at Finisham have a habit of getting in the way.

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Plot Keywords:

nurse | carry on | robbery | gang | father | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Carry On Line

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 May 1972 (UK)

Also Known As:

Carry on - Die total verrückte Oberschwester

Filming Locations:

Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Rank Organisation, Peter Rogers Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bernard Bresslaw had to wear a wig for his appearance in this film.

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Goofs

Obvious doll double for Miss Willing's baby when she chats to Sir Bernard Cutting.

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Quotes

Dr. Prodd: Mrs. Tucker, isn't it? Now what can I do for you?
Mrs. Tucker: Well, I came to see you three months ago, because I was a little bit worried about my husband being able to have a baby.
Dr. Prodd: Yes, that's right, he's a bit older than you, isn't he?
Mrs. Tucker: Eighty-eight.
Dr. Prodd: Yes.
Mrs. Tucker: Well, if you remember, you suggested it might be a good idea to take in a lodger, you know, someone nearer my own age.
Dr. Prodd: [uncomfortably] Yes, well, purely off the record, of course.
Mrs. Tucker: Well, it worked! I'm pregnant.
Dr. Prodd: Oh! What about your husband?
Mrs. Tucker: Oh, he's ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Alternative Titles: "Womb at the Top" and "The Preggers Opera"

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Alternate Versions

Some prints have completely different music over the title sequence, particularly as the 'alternative titles' appear on the screen.

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Connections

Follows Carry On Cabby (1963)

User Reviews

Nursing is a drag

Around the time that Carry On Matron was made there was a concern in the United Kingdom about a declining birthrate. You couldn't prove it here by all the kanoodling and attempted kanoodling going on at this maternity hospital.

Birthing babies and the prevention of that is the subject for the satire of Carry On Matron. Right about then birth control pills were at a premium in the British Isles and Sid James and his cronies have an idea to rob the Maternity Hospital of its supply of the pills. But first in order to pinch them they have to know where the hospital keeps them.

That's when James gets the idea to have his son Kenneth Cope go in a disguise drag as a new matron. Of course Cope is a red-blooded British male and the job proves difficult to concentrate on, especially after he's roomed with Barbara Windsor who packs naturally what he has to use some socks to convey.

Carry On regular Joan Sims is the way overdue expectant mother who is enjoying all the service the hospital provides and milking every bit of it while her husband Kenneth Connor a railroad worker has taken up residence in the waiting room waiting for his first child. Kenneth Williams is the head of the hospital, a man with issues whom he hopes that head nurse Hattie Jacques will solve. Solving everyone's issues is hospital psychologist Charles Hawtrey.

It was with poignancy also that I watched Kenneth Williams pursuing Jacques and trying to explain his problems. It was a little too close to home for the real Kenneth Williams.

The final robbery is borrowed somewhat from The Lavendar Hill Mob which is only right since Sid James was in that film as well.

A real Carry On classic.