
Robert Desmond
Actor · 1922 – 2002 · London, England, UK
Robert Desmond (16 December 1922 – 2002) was a British film and television actor of the 1950s and 1960s. He started out in juvenile roles, making his film debut in 1948's The Guinea Pig opposite Richard Attenborough. He appeared in a number of early television films such Boys in Brown, recreating the role of Spud Parker in the theatrical film version of 1949, again with Attenborough. He would appear opposite Attenborough one more time in The Great Escape (1963), as Griffith the Tailor. Other films include The Cockleshell Heroes (1955), Indiscreet (1958), The Ugly Duckling (1959), Sink the Bismarck! (1960), The Bulldog Breed (1960) and The Best of Enemies (1961).
Movies15
Movie7.9AdventureDramaThe Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to sit out the remainder of the war. Undaunted, the prisoners plan one of the most ambitious escape attempts of World War II. Based on a true story.
The Great Escape
1963 · 2.9K votes
Movie6.8WarDramaThe story of the breakout of the German battleship Bismarck—accompanied by the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen—during the early days of World War II. The Bismarck and her sister ship, Tirpitz, were the most powerful battleships in the European theater of World War II. The British Navy must find and destroy Bismarck before it can escape into the convoy lanes to inflict severe damage on the cargo shipping which was the lifeblood of the British Isles. With eight 15 inch guns, it was capable of destroying every ship in a convoy while remaining beyond the range of all Royal Navy warships.
Sink the Bismarck!
1960 · 125 votes
Movie6.9ComedyWarDuring World War II, a plane full of RAF fighter crashes in the Ethiopian desert and they are met upon by an enemy Italian patrol that allows them to go free. But, when the Brits are given orders to attack the Italians, lots of problems ensue.
The Best of Enemies
1961 · 40 votes
Movie6.1ComedyNorman Puckle, a well-meaning but clumsy grocer's assistant, can't seem to do anything right. After being rejected by Marlene, the love of his life, he attempts suicide, but can't even do that. He is saved from jumping off a cliff at 'Lover's Leap' by a Royal Navy petty officer. He persuades Puckle to join the Royal Navy, where he'll meet 'lots of girls'. Life in the Navy proves not to be as rosy as it's been described, and Puckle fails at every task during basic training. But despite this, he's regarded by the Admiral in charge of a rocket project to be a 'typical average British sailor', and chosen to be the first man to fly into outer space in an experimental rocket.
The Bulldog Breed
1960 · 19 votes
Movie7.1DramaA working-class boy wins a scholarship to a public school, as part of a post-World War Two experiment in bringing boys of different social classes together.
The Guinea Pig
1948 · 17 votes
Movie6.5WarComedyNorman Pitkin and Mr Grimsdale are council workmen mending the road outside an Army base when they come into conflict with the military. Shortly afterwards, they get drafted and fall into the clutches of the Sergeant they have just bested. They are sent to France to repair roads in front of the Allied advance but get captured. Pitkin takes advantage of a useful similarity to impersonate General Schreiber and manages to return a hero
The Square Peg
1958 · 33 votes
Movie6.6ComedyRomanceAnna Kalman is an accomplished actress who has given up hope of finding the man of her dreams. While talking about this subject with her sister, in walks Philip Adams and she realizes that this is the charming, smart, and handsome man she has been waiting for.
Indiscreet
1958 · 207 votes
Movie6.2RomanceComedyNeagle stars as Frances Baring, a socialite widow attempting to keep her late husband's symphony orchestra going. Reluctantly she enlists the help of a young pop singer (Frankie Vaughan) who has fallen for Baring's daughter Joanna, played by a young Janette Scott.
The Lady is a Square
1959 · 5 votes
Movie7.1DramaA court case ensues when a 47-year old man is caught with a 15-year old girl, and he claims he never knew she was so young.
Too Young to Love
1960 · 7 votes
Movie5.9WarDuring WW2, German ships are "safely" docked upriver at Bordeaux, but the British send a team of kayakers to attack them.
The Cockleshell Heroes
1955 · 34 votes
Movie7.7ComedyRomanceElderly crook Harry Denton, when challenged to prove he is "not past it," decides to kidnap Sheila Farlane, the 16 year old daughter of a famous actor. When Harry loses his nerve, Sheila won't let him give up.
Don't Ever Leave Me
1949 · 3 votes
Movie6.0ComedyCrimeHenry Jekyll was always the outsider, a bungling and awkward buffoon, relegated to waiting for his invitation to participate in life that never arrived: until he discovers a medical formula developed by a dead uncle, which claimed to turn 'a man of timid disposition into a bold, fearless dragon'. Taking a draught of the elixir Henry is transformed into suave, sophisticated and highly desirable Teddy Hyde. Armed with his new persona, Teddy is ready to face the world; but is Henry ready for the consequences?
The Ugly Duckling
1959 · 6 votes
Movie7.3CrimeDramaA Liverpool gang member wins a singing contest is then called up for National Service where he clashes with another soldier.
These Dangerous Years
1957 · 3 votes
Movie6.3CrimeJackie lives in poverty with his widowed mother. In a bid to escape poverty he gets involved in a robbery that sees him sentenced to three years in Borstal where he meets a tough crowd, tougher than anything on the outside.
Boys in Brown
1949 · 12 votes
Movie5.1CrimeDramaAn honest news agent realizes that his 2 sons are corrupt. When one criminal son is in jail, the other breaks him out to help with a job.
Gaolbreak
1962 · 5 votes
Series3
TV5.0DramaSoapCompact was a British television soap opera shown by the BBC between 1962 and 1965. The series was created by Hazel Adair and Peter Ling, who together went on to devise Crossroads. In contrast to the kitchen sink realism of Coronation Street, Compact was a distinctly middle-class serial, set in the more "sophisticated" arena of magazine publishing. An early "avarice" soap, it took the viewer into the business workplace, and aligned the professional lives of the characters with more personal storylines. The show was scheduled for broadcast on Tuesdays and Thursdays, thus avoiding a clash with ITV's Coronation Street on Mondays and Wednesdays. When Compact began, the editor was a woman, Joanne Minster, yet it was not long before she was replaced by Ian Harmon, the son of the magazine's owner. Despite being largely criticised by reviewers, Compact was popular with the general public, and in 1964 a regular omnibus edition was introduced, broadcast on Sundays. Morris Barry, a some-time actor and BBC director – he directed several Doctor Who stories in the 1960s – took over as producer and was given a brief to spice the series up in view of the criticism it had received from the national press. But the BBC, never comfortable with the concept of soap opera, quietly dropped the series in 1965.
Compact
1962 · 3 votes
TV6.4Action & AdventureFamilyThe legendary character Robin Hood and his band of merry men in Sherwood Forest and the surrounding vicinity. While some episodes dramatised the traditional Robin Hood tales, most episodes were original dramas created by the show's writers and producers.
The Adventures of Robin Hood
1955 · 19 votes
TV7.0ComedyFollows the exploits of Hut 29, a dysfunctional group of soldiers and their National Service conscription into the British Army during the post war years.
The Army Game
1957 · 4 votes