The Happiest Days of Your Life (1950): Cast & Plot
The Happiest Days of Your Life is a 1950 comedy directed by Frank Launder, starring Harold Goodwin as Edwin: Staff of Nutbourne, Richard Wattis and Arthur Howard. It runs 1 hour 21 minutes.
- Released
- Runtime
- 1h 21m (81 min)
- Director
- Frank Launder
- Genre
- Comedy
- Original language
-
English - Studio
- Individual Pictures
- After the credits
- No No extra scene
What Is The Happiest Days of Your Life About?
The premise of The Happiest Days of Your Life without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.
Nutbourne College, a long‑standing all‑boys boarding school, receives orders that another school must share its facilities because of wartime housing restrictions. To its surprise, the incoming institution is an all‑girls school. The two headmasters quickly clash, each vying for control while contending with the Ministry’s directives. When a series of crises erupts, they are compelled to set aside their rivalry and cooperate.
The Happiest Days of Your Life Themes & Keywords
· 40 tags- rutherford and davis
- farce comedy
- slapstick comedy
- school
- teacher
- boarding school
- screenplay adapted by author
- rugby pitch
- parent teacher meeting
- school tour
- hand signal
- reference to maharishi mahesh yogi
+28 more Show fewer
- reference to henry viii
- reference to john knox
- female teacher
- shakespearean quotation
- reading a letter aloud
- gong
- pillow fight
- dormitory
- common room
- writing in dust
- boys' boarding school
- girl in boys' school
- locked in a room
- climbing out a window
- misunderstanding
- schoolgirl
- schoolboy
- school life
- high school teacher
- headmistress
- headmaster
- private school
- world war two
- teenager
- rugby
- gender conflict
- english countryside
- inheritance
The Happiest Days of Your Life Cast & Characters
Harold Goodwin leads the cast as Edwin: Staff of Nutbourne, with Richard Wattis as Arnold Billings: Staff of Nutbourne and Arthur Howard as Anthony Ramsden: Staff of Nutbourne. Directed by Frank Launder; 42 actors are credited in all.
- Director Frank Launder
- Harold Goodwin as Edwin: Staff of Nutbourne
- Richard Wattis as Arnold Billings: Staff of Nutbourne
- Arthur Howard as Anthony Ramsden: Staff of Nutbourne
- Guy Middleton as Victor Hyde-Brown: Staff of Nutbourne
Also Starring in The Happiest Days of Your Life
· 38 more- Edward Rigby Rainbow: Staff of Nutbourne
- Gladys Henson Mrs. Hampstead: Staff of Nutbourne
- John Turnbull Conrad Matthews: Staff of Nutbourne
- Percy Walsh Monsieur Joue: Staff of Nutbourne
- John Bentley Richard Tassell: Staff of Nutbourne
- Joyce Grenfell Miss Gossage: Staff of St. Swithin's
- Muriel Aked Miss Jezzard: Staff of St. Swithin's
- Myrette Morven Miss Chapel: Staff of St. Swithin's
- Bernadette O'Farrell Miss Harper: Staff of St. Swithin's
- Patience Rentoul Miss Armstrong: Staff of St. Swithin's
- Lilian Stanley Miss Curtis: Staff of St. Swithin's
- Alastair Sim Wetherby Pond
- Margaret Rutherford Muriel Whitchurch
- Jim Davis Talbot
- Laurence Naismith Dr. Collet
- Russell Waters Mr. West
Show all 42 cast members Show fewer cast members
- George Cole Junior Assistant Caretaker at Ministry of Education (Uncredited)
- George Benson Mr. Tripp
- Patricia Owens Angela Parry
- Stringer Davis Rev. Rich
- Charlotte Mitchell Ethel (Uncredited)
- Keith Faulkner Unsworth
- Olwen Brookes Mrs. Parry
- Mackenzie Ward Benson (Uncredited)
- Nan Munro Mrs. Jones
- Margaret Anderson Alice
- Vivien Wood Mrs. Ibbertson
- Kenneth Downey Sir Angus McNally
- Betty Blackler Mary
- Gertrude Kaye Assistant Cook (Uncredited)
- Stanley Lemin Mr. Parry
- Angela Glynne Barbara Colhoun
- Fred Marshall Metcalf
- Pat Pleasance Young Girl (Uncredited)
- Alan Broadhurst Mr. Ibbertson
- John Rhodes Cranbourne
- William Simonds Oliver
- Beryl Ede Political Canvasser (Uncredited)
More from Frank Launder
More films directed by Frank Launder: The Wildcats of St. Trinian’s, The Great St. Trinian’s Train Robbery, The Pure Hell of St. Trinian’s and The Bridal Path.
The Happiest Days of Your Life Plot Summary
What happens in The Happiest Days of Your Life from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 12 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 2-minute read.
Spoilers ahead
In September 1949, chaos erupts when St Swithin’s Girls’ School is accidentally billeted at Nutbourne College, a boys’ school in Hampshire. Wetherby Pond, [Alastair Sim], and Muriel Whitchurch, [Margaret Rutherford], struggle to hold things together as the children and staff squeeze into newly cramped spaces, making it impossible to share dormitories or other facilities without sparks flying.
Humor also springs from the wholesale departure of Nutbourne College’s domestic staff and their hurried, not-so-effective replacements from the St Swithin’s Home Economics class, whose well-meaning lessons clash with the practicalities of running a mixed-age, mixed-gender setup.
Full summary
The whole story of The Happiest Days of Your Life, scene by scene
The Happiest Days of Your Life Videos
The clip of The Happiest Days of Your Life.
How Well Do You Know The Happiest Days of Your Life?
9 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.
Question 1 of 9
- Question 1: not answered
- Question 2: not answered
- Question 3: not answered
- Question 4: not answered
- Question 5: not answered
- Question 6: not answered
- Question 7: not answered
- Question 8: not answered
- Question 9: not answered
Which actor plays the headmaster Wetherby Pond?
The Happiest Days of Your Life Also Known As
4 alternative titles, including “Das doppelte College” and “Nejšťastnější dny v životě”.
- Also known as
-
- Das doppelte College
- Nejšťastnější dny v životě
- 人生中最快乐的日子
- ¡Aquellos días tan felices!
Seen The Happiest Days of Your Life?
Movies Like The Happiest Days of Your Life
Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including The Happy Years, Happy Days and Girls’ School.
The Happiest Days of Your Life FAQ: Cast & Runtime
Runtime, release date, director, cast and post-credit scenes of The Happiest Days of Your Life, each answered in a sentence.
How long is The Happiest Days of Your Life?
The Happiest Days of Your Life runs 1 hour 21 minutes (81 minutes).
When was The Happiest Days of Your Life released?
The Happiest Days of Your Life was released on March 8, 1950.
Who directed The Happiest Days of Your Life?
The Happiest Days of Your Life was directed by Frank Launder.
More films by Frank Launder Who is in the cast of The Happiest Days of Your Life?
The Happiest Days of Your Life stars Harold Goodwin as Edwin: Staff of Nutbourne, Richard Wattis as Arnold Billings: Staff of Nutbourne and Arthur Howard as Anthony Ramsden: Staff of Nutbourne, among 42 credited actors.
Does The Happiest Days of Your Life have a post-credit scene?
No. The Happiest Days of Your Life has no extra scene during or after the credits.
Coming soon to your phone
The Plot Explained Movie Summary App
From blockbusters to hidden gems: plot summaries, endings explained and timelines on your phone. Save your favorites and never miss a twist again.
Be the first to know when it launches. Your email stays private, always. Learn more about the app
