Great British Movies: 1960s

Released: 26th July 2021. Four British dramas from the 1960s. In 'No Love for Johnnie' (1961) Peter Finch stars as a parliamentary MP whose thirst for greater power leads him into political intrigue. Johnnie Byrne (Finch) is an ambitious Labour MP whose hopes for personal glory are raised when his party triumphs in a general election, but Johnnie is overlooked for a role on the front benches. To make matters worse, his wife, Alice (Rosalie Crutchley) also leaves him because of his insistence on keeping two mistresses, including the youthful Pauline (Mary Peach). When Johnny is approached by a couple of fellow backbenchers for help in a scheme that may destabilise the government but advance their careers, Johnny is faced with an important choice. In 'The Beauty Jungle' (1964) a young woman finds a new career as a beauty queen. Typist Shirley Freeman (Janette Scott) is encouraged by newspaper man Don Mackenzie (Ian Hendry) to enter a beauty pageant while on vacation. After winning she decides to quit her job and become a full-time contestant, proving to be very successful. However, her success won't last forever. In 'Flame in the Streets' (1961), racial tensions are explored in early 1960s England, starring John Mills and Sylvia Sims. Jacko Palmer (Mills) is a union man who has to confront the prejudices of his members when a black foreman (Earl Cameron) is appointed, and the members threaten to strike. When he discovers that his daughter (Sims) wants to marry Jamaican schoolteacher Peter Lincoln (Johnny Sekka), however, Jacko must confront his own prejudices. In 'Nobody Runs Forever' (1968), starring Rod Taylor and Christopher Plummer, Australian police sergeant Scobie Malone (Taylor) is sent to London to arrest High Commissioner Sir James Quentin (Plummer), who is currently engaged in sensitive peace talks, on the suspicion of murdering his first wife 25 years previously. Malone allows Quentin a few days to finish his work before taking him back to Australia and during this time stays with the suspect and his second wife Sheila (Lilli Palmer) in their home. Complications arise, however, when Malone finds himself having to prevent Quentin's assassination at the hands of a ruthless group of spies.