The Smallest Show on Earth (1957): Cast & Plot
The Smallest Show on Earth is a 1957 comedy directed by Basil Dearden, starring Virginia McKenna as Jean Spenser, Bill Travers and Leslie Phillips. It runs 1 hour 23 minutes.
- Released
- Runtime
- 1h 23m (83 min)
- Director
- Basil Dearden
- Genre
- Comedy
- Original language
-
English - Studio
- Hallmark Productions
- After the credits
- No No extra scene
What Is The Smallest Show on Earth About?
The premise of The Smallest Show on Earth without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.
Jean and Bill, a married couple struggling to make ends meet, suddenly receive a telegram announcing that Bill’s long‑lost uncle has died and left them his cinema in the small town of Sloughborough. Hoping for a quick windfall, they discover the theatre is crumbling, barely worth anything, and their plans for a fortune quickly unravel.
The Smallest Show on Earth Themes & Keywords
· 34 tags- projectionist
- employer employee relationship
- arson
- alcoholic
- inheritance
- business rivalry
- abandoned theatre
- movie theater
- drinking
- drunkenness
- eavesdropping
- old man
+22 more Show fewer
- cat on a roof
- tea service
- typing
- theatre burned down
- riding a train
- metal box
- the flea pit theater
- spensers electric theater
- next to railroad tracks
- pajama string
- contract
- bijou kinema
- rutherford and davis
- couple
- young
- european comedy
- planet in title
- 1950s
- astronomical object in title
- europe
- british comedy
- 20th century
The Smallest Show on Earth Cast & Characters
Virginia McKenna leads the cast as Jean Spenser, with Bill Travers as Matt Spenser and Leslie Phillips as Robin Carter. Directed by Basil Dearden; 18 actors are credited in all.
-
Director Basil Dearden
-
Virginia McKenna as Jean Spenser - Bill Travers as Matt Spenser
- Leslie Phillips as Robin Carter
-
Margaret Rutherford as Mrs. Fazackalee
Also Starring in The Smallest Show on Earth
· 14 more- Peter Sellers Percy Quill
- Bernard Miles Old Tom
- Francis de Wolff Albert Hardcastle
- June Cunningham Marlene Hogg
- Sid James Mr. Hogg
- Frazer Hines Cast Member uncredited)
- Liz Fraser Girl in Cinema (uncredited)
- Peter Copley Actor in The Mystery of Hell Valley (uncredited)
- Stringer Davis Emmett
- Mario Fabrizi Actor in The Mystery of Hell Valley (uncredited)
- George Cormack Bell
- Billy Lawrence Cast Member (uncredited)
- George Cross Commissionaire
- Michael Corcoran Taxi Driver
More from Basil Dearden
More films directed by Basil Dearden, best-rated first: Victim, The Assassination Bureau, Woman of Straw and Mission: Monte Carlo.
The Smallest Show on Earth Plot Summary
What happens in The Smallest Show on Earth 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
Matt Spenser and Jean Spenser are a young married couple with dreams of travelling to exotic destinations such as Samarkand, though they cannot afford it. Their prospects seem to improve when Matt inherits a cinema from his great-uncle, raising hopes that they might run something successful at last. They expect to take over the glamorous “Grand” cinema, but the estate’s solicitor, Robin Carter, reveals a harder truth: the legacy is the decrepit Bijou Kinema, locally nicknamed “the Fleapit.” The venue sits tucked between two railway bridges and relies on three loyal but eccentric staff: Mrs. Fazackalee, the steady cashier and bookkeeper; Percy Quill, the aging projectionist with a fondness for alcohol; and Old Tom, the quiet commissionaire who works as doorman and usher.
Full summary
The whole story of The Smallest Show on Earth, scene by scene
How Well Do You Know The Smallest Show on Earth?
10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.
Question 1 of 10
- 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
- Question 10: not answered
What are the first names of the young married couple who inherit the cinema?
The Smallest Show on Earth Also Known As
17 alternative titles, including “Big Time Operators” and “Förlustelsens hus”.
- Also known as
-
- Big Time Operators
- Förlustelsens hus
- Sous le plus petit chapiteau du monde
- Die kleinste Schau der Welt
- Den tossede biograf
- Najmensie kino na svete
- Pennitön perintö
- Οι 3 συνωμόται
- La pazza eredità
- Verdens minste show
- Luzes sem Ribalta
- Chijou saishou no show
+5 more Show fewer
- Самое маленькое представление на свете
- Världens minsta show
- Dünyanın En Küçük Sineması
- 地球上最小的秀
- L'espectacle més petit de la Terra
Seen The Smallest Show on Earth?
Movies Like The Smallest Show on Earth
Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including The Show, Small Hotel and The Man with the Smallest Penis in Existence and the Electron Microscope Technician Who Loved Him.
-
The Show 1922 -
Small Hotel 1957 -
The Man with the Smallest Penis in Existence and the Electron Microscope Technician Who Loved Him 2003 -
In the Bleak Midwinter 1995 -
Small Time Crooks 2000 -
Little Big Top 2006 -
The Last Laugh 2019 -
Room Service 1938 -
Parlor, Bedroom and Bath 1931 -
Clockwise 1986 -
Tiny Troubles 1939 -
The Youngest Profession 1943
The Smallest Show on Earth FAQ: Cast & Runtime
Runtime, release date, director, cast and post-credit scenes of The Smallest Show on Earth, each answered in a sentence.
How long is The Smallest Show on Earth?
The Smallest Show on Earth runs 1 hour 23 minutes (83 minutes).
When was The Smallest Show on Earth released?
The Smallest Show on Earth was released on April 9, 1957.
Who directed The Smallest Show on Earth?
The Smallest Show on Earth was directed by Basil Dearden.
More films by Basil Dearden Who is in the cast of The Smallest Show on Earth?
The Smallest Show on Earth stars Virginia McKenna as Jean Spenser, Bill Travers as Matt Spenser and Leslie Phillips as Robin Carter, among 18 credited actors.
Does The Smallest Show on Earth have a post-credit scene?
No. The Smallest Show on Earth has no extra scene during or after the credits.
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