The Young Ones (1961) on Netflix
Their youth club will be demolished for an office block unless Nicky and his friends pay its new owner £1500. Nicky records a song; pirate radio touts him as the Mystery Singer.
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- IMDb5.8/10845 votes
- Rotten TomatoesNot available
Trailer
Plot summary
Nicky and his friends learn that their youth club in London's West End will be torn down for a large office block unless they can pay the new owner, the property tycoon Hamilton Black, £1500. The club members decide to stage a variety show of songs and dancing to raise the money, and to draw an audience Nicky records a song that his friends broadcast from a pirate radio station, billing him as the Mystery Singer. Interest in the unknown heart-throb lifts the coming performance. There is also a secret Nicky keeps to himself, even from his girlfriend Toni.
Cast
- Jet Harrisas Self (bass guitar)(The Shadows)
- Annette Robertsonas Barbara
- Sonya Cordeauas Dorinda Morell
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Young Ones (1961)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Herbert Ross, the film's choreographer, suggested New York performer Barbra Streisand as Cliff Richard's co-star, but Harper flew to New York to see her in a show and did not think that she was suitable.
- In May 1961 Annette Robinson, a 21-year-old actress from Ilford in Essex, was announced as Cliff Richard's female co-star, but within weeks the part was given to Carole Gray and Robinson was moved to the smaller role of Barbara.
- The film was originally meant to give the Shadows acting roles, but the parts intended for Hank Marvin and Jet Harris went to Richard O'Sullivan and Melvyn Hayes, leaving the Shadows as non-speaking band members.
- During a meeting in producer Kenneth Harper's flat, Harper, director Sidney J. Furie and writers Ronald Cass and Peter Myers agreed to borrow the storyline of the 1939 musical Babes in Arms, where Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland put on a show to raise money.
- When Carole Gray sings in the film, the voice is actually that of Grazina Frame, who also provided the singing voice for Lauri Peters in Cliff Richard's next film, Summer Holiday (1963).
- The standing set built for the film stayed up at Elstree for well over a decade, turning up in 60s and early 70s television including The Avengers, The Saint, The Baron, UFO and The Protectors.
- The film's title was reused for the British television series The Young Ones (1982-1984), which packed references to Cliff Richard into its twelve-episode run.
- A number of actresses were considered for Cliff Richard's co-star in The Young Ones: choreographer Herbert Ross suggested New York performer Barbra Streisand, and producer Kenneth Harper flew to New York to see her in a show but decided she was not suitable.
