The Blue Lamp

The Blue Lamp

Sheds just enough light for MURDER

1950 · 84 min · ★ 6.6 · Crime, Thriller, Action

P.C. George Dixon is a long-serving traditional copper who is due to retire shortly. He takes a new recruit under his aegis and introduces him to the easy-going night beat. Dixon is a classic ordinary hero but also anachronistic, unprepared and unable to answer the violence of the 1950s.

Directed by Basil Dearden · Written by T. E. B. Clarke

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Streaming

BFI Player Amazon Channel

Cast

Make it a double feature

2h 44m together

The Blue Lamp

Cage of Gold

Both from Basil Dearden.

More from Basil DeardenSee all →

The Last Appointment!The Last Appointment! · 1977
The Last Appointment!
10.01977
MovieAdventureComedy
Two jet-setting playboys, Brett Sinclair and Danny Wilde, investigate crimes. Two episodes of the TV series "The Persuaders" joined into a movie.
The Persuaders!The Persuaders! · 1971
The Persuaders!
7.71971
SeriesComedyAction & Adventure
An English aristocrat and an American millionaire come together to tackle crime.
VictimVictim · 1961
Victim
7.41961
MovieDramaCrime
A web of blackmail and murder attracts the attention of a barrister with a seemingly idyllic life, threatening to derail his career on the path of success.
Dead of NightDead of Night · 1945
Dead of Night
7.21945
MovieHorrorThriller
An architect, visiting an English country house, realizes the other guests are familiar from his recurring nightmare. When they share their tales of the supernatural, he is filled with a growing dread.
Violent PlaygroundViolent Playground · 1958
Violent Playground
7.21958
MovieCrimeDrama
A Liverpool juvenile liaison officer struggles with a young and dangerous pyromaniac.
Only When I LarfOnly When I Larf · 1968
Only When I Larf
7.11968
MovieCrimeComedy
A master conman leads a pair of British accomplices on an international adventure of highly profitable dirty tricks.
The League of GentlemenThe League of Gentlemen · 1960
The League of Gentlemen
7.11960
MovieComedyCrime
Involuntarily-retired Colonel Hyde recruits seven other dissatisfied ex-servicemen for a special project. Each of the men has a skeleton in the cupboard, is short of money, and is a service-trained expert in his field. The job is a bank robbery, and military discipline and planning are imposed by Hyde and second-in-command Race on the team, although civilian irritations do start getting in the way.
The Green ManThe Green Man · 1956
The Green Man
7.01956
MovieComedyCrime
Unknown to everyone but his shady Middle Eastern bosses, watchmaker Hawkins is actually a professional hired assassin with a predilection for killing his targets with bombs. After disposing of a dictator and millionaire, Hawkins is assigned to kill a politician who is heading to a remote hotel, The Green Man, for a secret tryst with his secretary. There, however, Hawkins' plot is discovered by vacuum salesman William Blake, who determines to stop him.
SapphireSapphire · 1959
Sapphire
7.01959
MovieMysteryCrime
Two Scotland Yard detectives investigate the murder of a young woman of mixed race who had been passing for white. As they interview a spate of suspects -- including the girl's white boyfriend and his disapproving parents -- the detectives wade through a stubbornly entrenched sludge of racism and bigotry.
The Rainbow JacketThe Rainbow Jacket · 1954
The Rainbow Jacket
7.01954
MovieDrama
A champion jockey is banned from racing so spends his time helping a young lad to become the next champion.
All Night LongAll Night Long · 1962
All Night Long
6.81962
MovieDramaMusic
Over the course of one eventful evening, the anniversary celebration of the musical and romantic partners Aurelius Rex and Delia Lane, a jealous, ambitious drummer, Johnny Cousin, attempts to tear the interracial couple apart.
The Smallest Show on EarthThe Smallest Show on Earth · 1957
The Smallest Show on Earth
6.71957
MovieComedy
Jean and Bill are a married couple trying to scrape a living. Out of the blue they receive a telegram informing them Bill's long-lost uncle has died and left them his business—a cinema in the town of Sloughborough. Unfortunately they can't sell it for the fortune they hoped as they discover it is falling down and almost worthless.
The Assassination BureauThe Assassination Bureau · 1969
The Assassination Bureau
6.71969
MovieActionAdventure
In 1908 London, a women's rights campaigner discovers the Assassination Bureau Limited, an organization that kills for justice. When its motives are called into question, she commissions the assassination of its chairman. Knowing that his colleagues have recently become more motivated by greed than morality, he turns the situation into a challenge for his board members: kill him or be killed.
Cage of GoldCage of Gold · 1950
Cage of Gold
6.71950
MovieDramaThriller
The love that Judy, a young painter, feels for Alan, a promising doctor to whom she is engaged, falters when Bill, an old friend, suddenly appears.
Saraband for Dead LoversSaraband for Dead Lovers · 1948
Saraband for Dead Lovers
6.61948
MovieRomanceHistory
Sophie Dorothea is a young woman forced into a loveless marriage with Prince George Louis of Hanover. George Louis is later crowned King George I of England. Despairing of ever experiencing true love, the depressed queen finds life at court no solace. Sophie then falls for a dashing Swedish soldier of fortune, Count Konigsmark.
Pool of LondonPool of London · 1951
Pool of London
6.61951
MovieCrimeDrama
Jewel thieves, murder, and a manhunt swirl around a sailor off a cargo ship in post-war London.

More Like This

EarthquakeEarthquake · 1974
Earthquake
6.21974
MovieActionDrama
Various interconnected people struggle to survive when an earthquake of unimaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles, California.
Dead AgainDead Again · 1991
Dead Again
6.41991
MovieMysteryThriller
In 1949, composer Roman Strauss is executed for the murder of his wife. In 1990s Los Angeles, a detective comes across a mute amnesiac woman who is somehow linked to the Strauss murder.
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New OrleansBad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans · 2009
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
6.22009
MovieDramaCrime
Terrence McDonagh is a New Orleans Police sergeant, who receives a medal and a promotion to lieutenant for heroism during Hurricane Katrina. Due to his heroic act, McDonagh injures his back and becomes addicted to prescription pain medication. He then finds himself involved with a drug dealer who is suspected of murdering a family of African immigrants.
Cape FearCape Fear · 1962
Cape Fear
7.51962
MovieThrillerDrama
Sam Bowden witnesses a rape committed by Max Cady and testifies against him. When released after 8 years in prison, Cady begins stalking Bowden and his family but is always clever enough not to violate the law.
Key LargoKey Largo · 1948
Key Largo
7.51948
MovieCrimeThriller
A hurricane swells outside, but it's nothing compared to the storm within the hotel at Key Largo. There, sadistic mobster Johnny Rocco holes up - and holds at gunpoint hotel owner James Temple, his widowed daughter-in-law Nora, and ex-GI Frank McCloud.
Kung Fu HustleKung Fu Hustle · 2004
Kung Fu Hustle
7.52004
MovieActionComedy
It's the 1940s, and the notorious Axe Gang terrorizes Shanghai. Small-time criminals Sing and Bone hope to join, but they only manage to make lots of very dangerous enemies. Fortunately for them, kung fu masters and hidden strength can be found in unlikely places. Now they just have to take on the entire Axe Gang.
Dick TracyDick Tracy · 1990
Dick Tracy
6.21990
MovieAdventureComedy
The comic strip detective finds his life vastly complicated when Breathless Mahoney makes advances towards him while he is trying to battle Big Boy Caprice's united mob.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter