Frank Launder

Frank Launder
Born(1906-01-28)28 January 1906
Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England
Died23 February 1997(1997-02-23) (aged 91)
Monte Carlo, Monaco
Occupation(s)Film director, producer, writer
Spouse(s)Bernadette O'Farrell (1950–1997; his death)
2 children

Frank Launder (28 January 1906 – 23 February 1997) was a British writer, film director and producer, who made more than 40 films, many of them in collaboration with Sidney Gilliat.[1][2]

Early life and career

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He was born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England and worked briefly as a clerk before becoming an actor and then a playwright.[3]

He began working as a screenwriter on British films in the 1930s, contributing the original story for the classic Will Hay comedy Oh, Mr Porter! (1937).[4]

Sidney Gilliat

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Launder first collaborated with Gilliat in 1936 on the film Seven Sinners.[5] After writing a number of screenplays with Gilliat, including The Lady Vanishes (1938) for Alfred Hitchcock, and Night Train to Munich for Carol Reed; the two men wrote and directed the wartime drama Millions Like Us (1943).[2][6][7] He and Gilliat were championed by studio head Ted Black who influenced the team's later career.[8]

After founding their own production company Individual Pictures, they produced a number of memorable dramas and thrillers including I See a Dark Stranger (1945) and Green for Danger (1946), but were best known for their comedies including The Happiest Days of Your Life (1950) and most famously, the St Trinian's series, based on Ronald Searle's cartoons set in an anarchic girls school.[9][10]

After The Happiest Days of Your Life Launder focused entirely on comedy.[3]

According to the British Film Institute 'over a hundred films feature either Launder or Gilliat in the credits, nearly forty feature both' but this large number was not 'at the expense of quality'.[6]

Personal life

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He was married secondly to actress Bernadette O'Farrell from 1950 until his death in Monaco.[5] The couple had two children.[11] Launder also had two children from his first marriage.[5]

Selected films

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Year Title Director Writer Producer
1929 Under the Greenwood Tree No Yes No
1930 Children of Chance No Yes No
The W Plan No Yes No
1931 Hobson's Choice No Yes No
Keepers of Youth No Yes No
The Woman Between No Yes No
Children of Fortune No Yes No
1932 After Office Hours No Yes No
Josser in the Army No Yes No
For the Love of Mike No Yes No
1933 Hawley's of High Street No Yes No
Facing the Music No Yes No
A Southern Maid No Yes No
1934 Those Were the Days No Yes No
1935 Get Off My Foot No Yes No
Rolling Home No Yes No
The Black Mask No Yes No
Emil and the Detectives No Yes No
1936 Educated Evans No Yes No
Twelve Good Men No Yes No
Where's Sally? No Yes No
1937 Don't Get Me Wrong No Yes No
Oh, Mr Porter! No Story No
1938 The Lady Vanishes No Yes No
1940 Night Train to Munich No Yes No
They Came by Night No Yes No
1942 The Young Mr. Pitt No Yes No
1943 Millions Like Us Yes Yes Yes
1944 Two Thousand Women Yes Yes No
1945 I See a Dark Stranger Yes Yes No
1946 Green for Danger No No Yes
1947 Captain Boycott Yes Yes No
1949 The Blue Lagoon Yes Yes Yes
1950 The Happiest Days of Your Life Yes Yes Yes
1952 Folly to Be Wise Yes Yes Yes
1953 The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan No No Yes
1954 The Belles of St. Trinian's Yes Yes Yes
1955 The Constant Husband No No Yes
Geordie No Yes Yes
1956 The Green Man No Yes Yes
1957 Blue Murder at St Trinian's Yes Yes Yes
1959 Left Right and Centre No Yes Yes
The Bridal Path Yes Yes Yes
1960 The Pure Hell of St Trinian's Yes Yes Yes
1965 Joey Boy Yes Yes No
1966 The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery Yes Yes No
1980 The Wildcats of St Trinian's Yes Yes No

References

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  1. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Launder, Frank (1906-1997) Biography". www.screenonline.org.uk. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Frank Launder". Archived from the original on 24 October 2017.
  3. ^ a b "Obituary: Frank Launder". The Independent. 24 February 1997. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  4. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Oh, Mr Porter! (1937)". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  5. ^ a b c "Frank Launder obituary". The Times. No. 65821. 24 February 1997.
  6. ^ a b "BFI Screenonline: Launder and Gilliat". www.screenonline.org.uk. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  7. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Millions Like Us (1943)". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  8. ^ Vagg, Stephen (1 December 2024). "Forgotten British Film Moguls: Ted Black". Filmink. Retrieved 1 December 2024.
  9. ^ "Individual Pictures". Archived from the original on 9 February 2018.
  10. ^ "BFI Screenonline: Launder and Gilliat". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  11. ^ "Robin Hood's courageous sweetheart". The Irish Times.
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