Carry On Columbus

Carry On Columbus (1992)

Christopher Columbus believes he can find an alternative route to the far East and persuades the King and Queen of Spain to finance his expedition...

Date of release
1992-10-02
TMDB
3.9 / 10 (47)
Runtime
1h 31m
Genres
Comedy
Director
Gerald Thomas
Collection
Carry On Collection

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Filmed in: Pinewood Studios

Carry On Columbus is a 1992 British comedy film directed by Gerald Thomas and written by Dave Freeman and John Antrobus. The 31st and final release in the Carry On film series, it starred Carry On regular Jim Dale in the title role, alongside a range of younger actors associated with alternative comedy.

Production

The Carry On series had ended in 1978 following the negative critical reception and box office failure of Carry On Emmannuelle. Plans to reignite the series with projects such as Carry on Down Under, Carry on Dallas, and Carry on Again Nurse did not come to fruition.

The project developed with some speed so that the film could be released in 1992. Comedy writer Dave Freeman, who had previous written 1975's Carry On Behind and several episodes of the Carry on Laughing television series, was tasked with writing the screenplay within three weeks so that the film could be released in summer 1992. John Antrobus, who had written Carry on Sergeant, also contributed to the script.

Many of the series core cast members had died by the time Carry on Columbus was in pre-production. When Robbie Coltrane declined the offer to play the title role, Jim Dale agreed to play Columbus to bring 'star power', out of affection and loyalty to the series and its producer and director. Surviving members such as Barbara Windsor, Kenneth Connor and Joan Sims declined the minor supporting roles that they were offered.

In her autobiography, Joan Sims says that she had "little enthusiasm" to appear in Columbus when asked by Gerald Thomas, and was "relieved" that she could tell him "in all honesty" that filming clashed with other commitments, particularly the BBC sitcom On the Up. Veteran Carry On performer Frankie Howerd was signed up to play the King of Spain, but he died in April 1992 shortly before production started; his role was played by Leslie Phillips.

Several actors who had previously appeared in the series, Jack Douglas, Peter Gilmore, Bernard Cribbins, Leslie Phillips, Jon Pertwee, and June Whitfield, were included in the cast. Due to a miscommunication with his wife, Pertwee initially assumed he had been offered a part in 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992), and was disappointed to read the script cover sheet.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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