Adventures of a Plumber's Mate is a 1978 British sex comedy film directed by Stanley Long and starring Christopher Neil as Sid South.[1] Following Adventures of a Taxi Driver (1976) and Adventures of a Private Eye (1977), it was the final film of the series which attempted to occupy the same market position as the better-known and more successful Confessions series starring Robin Askwith.
| Adventures of a Plumber's Mate | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical ball | |
| Directed by | Stanley Long |
| Written by | Stephen D. Frances Aubrey Cash |
| Produced by | Stanley Long Peter Long |
| Starring | Christopher Neil Arthur Mullard Stephen Lewis Willie Rushton |
| Cinematography | Peter Sinclair |
| Edited by | Joe Gannon |
| Music by | Christopher Neil |
| Distributed by | Salon Productions |
Release date |
|
Running time | 88 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Cast
- Christopher Neil as Sid South
- Arthur Mullard as Blackie
- Stephen Lewis as Crapper
- Anna Quayle as Loretta Proudfoot
- Willie Rushton as Dodger
- Nina West as Sally
- Prudence Drage as Janice
- Suzy Mandel as first tennis girl
- Christopher Biggins as Robin
- Elaine Paige as Susie (credited as Daisy)
- Leon Greene as Biggs
- Peter Cleall as Carson
- Richard Caldicot as Wallings
- Jonathan Adams as rent collector
- Claire Davenport as Belinda
- Jerold Wells as Stropper
- Derek Martin as motorcycle dealer
Although Stephen Lewis's character is given the name Crapper, he is in fact recreating his TV role in On The Buses as Inspector Blake.
Critical reception
For Monthly Film Bulletin, Tim Pulleine wrote: "A glum essay in blue-nosed British farce, featuring a dismayingly loutish protagonist and rapidly abandoning any pretence at an integrated plot. The most regrettable aspect of the film is that a vicious criminal who beats up his wife is presented as an acceptable figure of fun. Elsewhere, the lack of concern for convincing detail is demonstrated by having a supposed Picasso painting hanging on the side of the owner's swimming pool."[2]
The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 1/5 stars, writing: "An example of the British blue comedy boom of the 1970s, this tatty tale presents wife-beating as slapstick. Christopher Neil is unappealing as the hero, whose attempts to settle his debts bring him into contact with endless sex-starved women and gangster William Rushton."[3]
