Get Cracking

Get Cracking

George joins the Home Guard and saves the day with his secret weapon!

1943 · 96 min · ★ 6.3 · Comedy, War, Romance

Get Cracking is a 1943 British comedy war film, directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Dinah Sheridan, Ronald Shiner and George Formby. It was produced by Marcel Varnel, Ben Henry and Columbia (British) Productions. This comedy explores the wayward rivalry between mechanic and Home Guard Lance Corporal George Singleton (George Formby) and an adversary also in the Home Guard (Ronald Shiner). When the rival Home Guard units of Major Wallop and Minor Wallop are sent on battle manoeuvres, George Singleton (Formby) launches his own unique style of commando raid against neighbouring Major Wallop to steal a Vickers machine gun. The raid fails and Singleton loses his Lance Corporal's stripe, so he and a little evacuee girl named Irene (Vera Frances) decide to fall back on 'Plan B' - to build their very own tank.

Directed by Marcel Varnel · Written by Michael Vaughan

Your Rating

Cast

George Formby George Singleton
Dinah Sheridan Mary Pemberton
Edward Rigby Sam Elliott
Ronald Shiner Everett Manley
Frank Pettingell Alf Pemberton
Wally Patch Sgt. Joe Preston
E. V. H. Emmett Commentator (voice)
Frank Atkinson Station Master
Harry Fowler Boy on Skates
Vera Frances Irene
Irene Handl Maggie Turner
Mike Johnson Josh

Make it a double feature

2h 59m together

Get Cracking

I Thank You

Both from Marcel Varnel.

More from Marcel VarnelSee all →

This Man Is Mine

This Man Is Mine · 1946

This Man Is Mine

One wartime Christmas the well-to-do Ferguson family extends a festive welcome to various strays, with comic results.

Royal Cavalcade

Royal Cavalcade · 1935

Royal Cavalcade

MovieDramaDocumentary

Made in commemoration and celebration of the Jubilee of King George V, this is the story of the first twenty-five years of his reign, told through the many travels of a penny that was minted in the year of his accession: 1910. Through a series of individual stories, Royal Cavalcade covers a period of striking change in every area of life – from the suffragette movement to the trenches of World War One, the effects of the Depression to single events such as the first ever Royal Command Performance, featuring Anna Pavlova and George Robey.

Alf's Button Afloat

Alf's Button Afloat · 1938

Alf's Button Afloat

Alf discovers that one of the buttons on his pyjamas is made from the metal of Aladdin's lamp and that when he cleans it a genie appears.

Ask a Policeman

Ask a Policeman · 1939

Ask a Policeman

The mirthful adventures of Police-Sergeant Samuel Dudfoot and his two constables, Albert Brown and Jeremias Harbottle, who stage a fabricated crime-wave to save their jobs---and then find themselves involved in the real thing.

Where's That Fire

Where's That Fire · 1939

Where's That Fire

Capt Viking and his incompetent fire crew accidentally foil a plot to steal the crown jewels.

I Thank You

I Thank You · 1941

Classic comedy starring Arthur Askey. The perils, humiliations and humour of trying to run a second-rate theatrical company are further compounded when financial aid, given by the former famous music-hall star Lady Randall (Lily Morris), is withdrawn. Not to be defeated, the stars decide the show must go on and devise a plan to persuade her to reinvest

Hey! Hey! USA

Hey! Hey! USA · 1938

While working as a porter Benjamin Twist mistakenly ends up on a cruise ship heading for the USA. Upon landing on the American coast Twist takes up work as a professor.

Good Morning, Boys!

Good Morning, Boys! · 1937

Good Morning, Boys!

MovieComedyCrime

Dr. Benjamin Twist (Hay) and his pupils become involved with art thieves on a trip to Paris. Hay’s seamy schoolmaster act is supported by a fine cast including Charles Hawtrey and Lilli Palmer.

Infernal Machine

Infernal Machine · 1933

Infernal Machine

This pre-Code comedy-thriller centers on Robert Holden, a broke and discouraged veteran, who meets fellow American Elinor Green at a cafe in Paris. After their first encounter, Holden's attempt to return Green's thought-to-be stolen purse ends up rendering him a stowaway on board a ship bound for America. Also aboard is a collection of characters, including Green's banker fiancé, a famed scientist, and an opera singer. Romance begins to blossom between Holden and Green, just as a radiogram claims that an “infernal machine,” or bomb, is aboard the ship. Quickly each passenger accuses the others of planting the bomb until eventually Holden, jealous of Green's attention to her undeserving fiancé, falsely admits to being the culprit. In his role as assumed perpetrator, Holden tests the group further.

Oh, Mr. Porter!

Oh, Mr. Porter! · 1937

Oh, Mr. Porter!

Comedy in which a bungling railway worker is given the job of stationmaster at a rundown station in rural Ireland, where his sidekicks are a toothless old gaffer and a portly young loudmouth. Hilarious adventures ensue, including a locomotive chase after gunrunners make off with a train.

Convict 99

Convict 99 · 1938

A disgraced school master, Benjamin Twist, is mistaken for a tough prison governor and assigned the charge of a prison for particularly hardened criminals. Believing he is being sent to a school rather than a prison, he celebrates accordingly only to find that his drunkenness accidently lands him on the wrong side of the prison bars. The Governorship is eventually restored to him, and he sets about popularising himself amongst the convicts by turning a blind eye to their shady dealings.

The Silent Witness

The Silent Witness · 1932

The Silent Witness

A London nobleman (Lionel Atwill) takes the blame and stands trial after his son strangles a lover (Greta Nissen).

The Ghost of St. Michael's

The Ghost of St. Michael's · 1941

The Ghost of St. Michael's

Will Hay, back in his role as a hapless teacher, is hired by a grim school in remotest Scotland. The school soon starts to be haunted by a legendary ghost, whose spectral bagpipes signal the death of one of the staff. Hay, assisted by Claude Hulbert and Charles Hawtrey, has to unravel the mystery before he becomes the next victim.

Turned Out Nice Again

Turned Out Nice Again · 1941

Turned Out Nice Again

MovieMusicComedy

George Pearson, an employee at an underwear factory, is caught between his modern wife and his meddling mother. After buying a special yarn and getting his wife to promote it, he has an argument with his boss, Mr Dawson who insults Pearson's wife and refuses to apologise. Pearson then resigns. After finding out that the yarn is actually worth a fair amount, Mr Dawson tries to buy it from Pearson but he has some competition.

Hi Gang!

Hi Gang! · 1941

MovieRomanceComedy

Hi Gang! is a 1941 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon and Vic Oliver. It was a spin-off from the popular radio series Hi Gang!.

South American George

South American George · 1941

South American George

To help out his exact double, George Formby (in a dual role) takes the place of a noted South American tenor. This way he can help the opera star fulfill contract obligations and also win the heart of the man's lovely press agent, Linden Travers.

More Like This

Couldn't load this row right now.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter