Carry On Betting

Remember the Carry On Films?  

Even the younger generation have their favourites. Ask any older folk and I'm sure they could name a list of films and characters.  

One of my favourites is Carry On At Your Convenience. The film was released in 1971 and surprisingly the first box office failure of the series. This was credited to the fact it explored a political theme and that of trade unions which alienated the traditional working class audience. In fact it took until 1976 before it returned full production costs.  

The plot is set in the bathroom ceramics factory W.C Boggs & Son.  

Sid James played the part of Sid Plummer who helped the business out of trouble when Joey the budgie kept revealing winning horse racing tips.  

The scene which sticks in my mind is when Sid places a big bet on a horse called Peewit The Third.  

It's interesting to consider that Sid James didn't just play the gambler in this film, he love to bet in real life. In fact, he had a repuation...  

James was a compulsive gambler who lost tens of thousdands of pounds betting on horses over the years. It is interesting to learn that he was known to be tight with his money. The reason being, that he was in debt and looking for money to bet on the next 'sure thing'.