Post by Gene Hunt on May 12, 2017 18:52:50 GMT
With a Stanley Baker thread already running here on 4:3tv, I thought I'd create a thread dedicated to one of my favourite Baker films - Hell Drivers (1957)
A brief Synopsis of the film:
Joe Yately (Stanley Baker) is know by his nickname of "Tom". He has just been released from prison and is looking to start a new life. He pitches up at Hawletts, a Haulage Contractor, looking for work.
After meeting with Cartley the manager (played by William Hartnell) he is sent on a trial run as one of the drivers. After impressing with his driving skills, Tom is offered a full time job.
It soon becomes apparent that the job is not quite as straight forward as he thought. Cartley encourages his drivers to break the law by driving dangerously and speeding in order to make as many runs as possible in a day.
Tom gets on OK with almost all the drivers except one. The head driver. "Red", played by Patrick McGoohan is a bully and also holds the record for the most round trips in a day. He is so confident he can not be beaten, that he offers up a gold cigarette case to any driver that can do more trips in a day than him.
Tom decides to give it a go...
Without giving any more of the storyline away, it's suffice to say that things get out of hand.
Filmed in an era when the roads were much quieter than they are now, we still see some great footage of these lorries hurtling around the roads near Pinewood Studios. Even though the footage is cranked up to emphasise the speed, we still see some daredevil driving that has you on the edge of your seat.
A few notes about the film:
The lorries used were Dodge 100 Kew vehicles. Impossible to tell as the film was in black & white, but they were in fact green lorries with black mud guards. Some of the lorries were supplied by a local haulage firm called Drinkwater.
The film contains one of the most impressive cast lists ever seen. Stanley Baker, Patrick McGoohan, Gordon Jackson, Sean Connery, Sid James, David McCallum, Alfie Bass, Herbert Lom, William Hartnell, Wilfrid Lawson, Peggy Cummins and Jill Ireland. In fact, David McCallum met Jill Ireland during filming and they went on to get married.
Though I can not substantiate this story, it has been said that Baker & McGoohan did not get on well at all off screen or on! The realism of the fight scene between the two is said to be as good as it is due to the pair actually going for it for real. As I said, I can neither prove nor disprove this.
Some years ago, I was in contact with a guy called Dennis who had a link with Pinewood Studios. He had in his possession a set of stills take of the sets used for Hell Drivers. He kindly sent me copies of these but try as I might, while devising this thread I could not find them anywhere. So, I got back in touch with Dennis and he very kindly sent my hi resolution copies of the original 4x5 negatives. They are stunning. I am extremely grateful to him for sending me those and delighted to be able to share them with 4:3tv members.
Here they are.
If you look closely, you can see the lighting and sound rigs in some shots.... and remember, these are 60 years old this year.
Firstly, some shots of the exterior set of Ma West's house, where some of the drivers lodged.
Then a few interior shots of Ma West's house.
Here are some interiors of "The Pull In" Transport Cafe.
Exteriors.
Hawletts Haulage Exteriors.
Hawletts Garage Workshop.
If you haven't seen this film, I highly recommend it. It is available on DVD with numerous extras.
...and yes, before you ask, I do know where most of it was filmed
Gene.
A brief Synopsis of the film:
Joe Yately (Stanley Baker) is know by his nickname of "Tom". He has just been released from prison and is looking to start a new life. He pitches up at Hawletts, a Haulage Contractor, looking for work.
After meeting with Cartley the manager (played by William Hartnell) he is sent on a trial run as one of the drivers. After impressing with his driving skills, Tom is offered a full time job.
It soon becomes apparent that the job is not quite as straight forward as he thought. Cartley encourages his drivers to break the law by driving dangerously and speeding in order to make as many runs as possible in a day.
Tom gets on OK with almost all the drivers except one. The head driver. "Red", played by Patrick McGoohan is a bully and also holds the record for the most round trips in a day. He is so confident he can not be beaten, that he offers up a gold cigarette case to any driver that can do more trips in a day than him.
Tom decides to give it a go...
Without giving any more of the storyline away, it's suffice to say that things get out of hand.
Filmed in an era when the roads were much quieter than they are now, we still see some great footage of these lorries hurtling around the roads near Pinewood Studios. Even though the footage is cranked up to emphasise the speed, we still see some daredevil driving that has you on the edge of your seat.
A few notes about the film:
The lorries used were Dodge 100 Kew vehicles. Impossible to tell as the film was in black & white, but they were in fact green lorries with black mud guards. Some of the lorries were supplied by a local haulage firm called Drinkwater.
The film contains one of the most impressive cast lists ever seen. Stanley Baker, Patrick McGoohan, Gordon Jackson, Sean Connery, Sid James, David McCallum, Alfie Bass, Herbert Lom, William Hartnell, Wilfrid Lawson, Peggy Cummins and Jill Ireland. In fact, David McCallum met Jill Ireland during filming and they went on to get married.
Though I can not substantiate this story, it has been said that Baker & McGoohan did not get on well at all off screen or on! The realism of the fight scene between the two is said to be as good as it is due to the pair actually going for it for real. As I said, I can neither prove nor disprove this.
Some years ago, I was in contact with a guy called Dennis who had a link with Pinewood Studios. He had in his possession a set of stills take of the sets used for Hell Drivers. He kindly sent me copies of these but try as I might, while devising this thread I could not find them anywhere. So, I got back in touch with Dennis and he very kindly sent my hi resolution copies of the original 4x5 negatives. They are stunning. I am extremely grateful to him for sending me those and delighted to be able to share them with 4:3tv members.
Here they are.
If you look closely, you can see the lighting and sound rigs in some shots.... and remember, these are 60 years old this year.
Firstly, some shots of the exterior set of Ma West's house, where some of the drivers lodged.
Then a few interior shots of Ma West's house.
Here are some interiors of "The Pull In" Transport Cafe.
Exteriors.
Hawletts Haulage Exteriors.
Hawletts Garage Workshop.
If you haven't seen this film, I highly recommend it. It is available on DVD with numerous extras.
...and yes, before you ask, I do know where most of it was filmed
Gene.