ianlouisiana Review of Doctor at Large

Doctor at Large (1957)

"Big Breaths" "Yeth,and I 'm only thixteen"

[7/10 · 9 December 2006]

From a Britain of Travelling Salesmen,Surgical Appliance Shops and Dirty Weekends comes a glimpse of a long - forgotten past in "Doctor at large".Mr Dirk Bogarde,Miss Muriel Pavlow and Mr Donald Sinden happily recreate their principal roles and Mr James Robertson Justice reappears as that stuff of legend Sir Lancelot Spratt.The film mainly concerns itself with the struggles of Dr Simon Sparrow (Mr D. Bogarde) as he serves as a locum in various medical practises throughout the country.At one such in the midlands (populated almost exclusively by Shepperton cockneys)he clashes swords with Miss Glady Henson who fortunately does not appear to recognise him as the murderer of her husband PC Dixon a few years earlier. He pursues attractive blonde (well,this was 1957) nurse Miss Shirley Eaton and , in a rather racy scene she agrees to stay overnight with him at an hotel in the country.They put up at "The Judge's Rest" - later rather confusingly referred to as "The Judge's Arms" - where love was unable to find a way past the formidable Miss Judith Furse as the sort of landlady who would if necessary interpose her body between an illicit couple and enjoy doing it. Miss M. Pavlow - terribly nice and incorrigibly virginal - loves him from afar and he behaves towards her more like a GBF than a potential lover,something that she signally fails to spot.His last - minute conversion to her cause is not particularly convincing. Mr D.Sinden's role as uber - lech Dr Benskin has been lampooned by every Hospital Panto for the last fifty years so he must have been doing something right.Perhaps he was living the fantasy of every young male medical student. The sublime Mr A.E. Matthews graces the screen as the absolutely potty Duke of Skye and Lewes and serves to remind us of the once abundant supply of delightful eccentrics that the British Film Industry could call upon to enliven even the most moribund production. There is the requisite number of breast and bottom jokes without which no British medical comedy could flourish but not one of them is remotely offensive.Lovers of Channel Four's "Green Wing" may recognise some of them. Although the "Doctor" franchise rumbled on for years,only "In the house" "at sea" and "at large" can be considered to be the "pur sang" of the series.Even by 1957 Mr D. Bogarde was looking a little fretful and in 1958 he appeared in "The Doctor's Dilemma" which caused a lot of confusion amongst the less literate of his fans. I like to think that there is a heaven somewhere where he is driving his long - bonnetted Vauxhall convertible along a deserted country road with Miss Shirley Eaton's pretty scarfed head resting on his shoulder.As they reach the brow of a hill you can see the bright blue sea sparkling in the distance.Mr Bogarde's hair is blowing in the slipstream as they pull off into the car park of an old country inn. He takes a small suitcase out of the boot and they walk hand in hand to the front door.The Inn is called "The Judge's Rest" and the landlady ,Miss Judith Furse,smiles and says "Welcome Mr and Mrs Sparrow,I'll show you to your room"