holiday on the buses (1973)

"I'm sorry you broke your foot, it should have been your neck."
Stan (Reg Varney), Jack (Bob Grant) and Blakey (Stephen Lewis) are finally sacked for incompetence and are forced to take summer jobs at a holiday camp, and the usual mayhem ensues, especially when Stan wangles it for his family to join him.
Hammer decided the public were suckers for punishment, and foisted a third installment of the On The Buses series on the by now suspecting audience, and despite it having its moments, this proved to be the end of the franchise.

mutiny on the buses (1972)

"You lecherous moron."
Bus driver Stan Butler (Reg Varney) is under pressure to get married and leave home, but needs to get his brother-in-law Arthur (Michael Robbins) some work first. So he hits on the idea of teaching Arthur to drive a bus and get a job at the depot. His second plan is to take on some of the extra work available driving special tours to Windsor Safari Park.
Like most 70's males, Stan is sex obsessed, clueless and klutzy, a combination that leads to lots of embarrassing, and unfunny situations.

on the buses (1971)

"Oh my god, look what you've done!"
The successful TV series spins off into the highest performing film of 1971. The plot resolves around Stan (Reg Varney) needing some money, and quick, but his overtime has been cut as the bus company have decided to take on some female drivers. So with Jack (Bob Grant), they decide to get the new employees the sack in an attempt to get his overtime back.
Mildly amusing and decidedly unpc, that is more of an historical document, showing the cultural life of Britain at that point in time, and how far we have come since.

up pompeii (1971)

"She was the original good time had by all."
The everyday life of Roman era Pompeii, as seen through the eyes of Lurcio (Frankie Howerd). Trouble comes when Lurcio, charged with arranging his masters latest orgy in honour of Emperor Nero, inadvertently gets hold of a scroll plotting the Emperor's assassination and the plotters want it back.
Leiden with innuendo, this popular TV series spun off into a number of films, taking the Asterisk view of history.

stardust (1974)

"With a bit of luck I really think we are gonna make it big."
Continues the story of Jim MacLaine (David Essex), started in That'll Be The Day. As it starts it's 1963, and he hooks up with Mike (Adam Faith), who Jim offers a job as road manager for his band. Mike then sets out to make sure Jim achieves the fame he craves.
The rise of a band through the sixties and into the excesses of the seventies. Continues the gritty realism of That'll Be The Day.

that'll be the day (1973)

"Come on admit it, rock was just a phase."
It's the late 50's and bored with the idea of university, Jim (David Essex) takes off, determined to make his own way in the world. He gets jobs in a holiday camp, and at the fair, but they aren't as fun as he thought. Back home and sulking, he ends up working for his mother, married with a kid, but the wanderlust continues to burn, as does his desire to play in a band...
This is a warts and all look at the boredom, and drabness prevelant in the staid 50's. Good turns from Ringo Starr, Billy Fury and Keith Moon add to the fun. Double bill it with the follow up Stardust, to see Jim achieves the stardom he craves.