British Film in the 1970s Trivia Quiz

Answer: Lionel Jeffries

The film was adapted by Lionel Jeffries from the book of the same name, written by Edith Nesbit and published in 1906. It starred Jenny Agutter, Sally Thomsett and Gary Warren as the three children of the title, while Bernard Cribbins played the porter at the railway station.

It was the first film to be directed by Jeffries, who also directed 'Baxter!' (1972) and 'The Water Babies' (1978). His acting career lasted from 1950 until 2001 and included roles in 'Lust for Life' (1957), 'The Secret of My Success' (1965) and 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' (1968) among many others.

Answer: A Clockwork Orange

The film featured a character named Alex DeLarge, played by Malcolm McDowell, who led a violent gang in violent attacks, including rape. Following his arrest and imprisonment, Alex was subjected to a form of therapy designed to cure his urges by associating violence with physical illness.

The film was directed by Stanley Kubrick and was based on a short novel written by Anthony Burgess. The film was controversial from the outset, for the original violence of Alex's crimes and for the repeated images shown during his 'treatment'. It was withdrawn from circulation in the UK, on Kubrick's instructions, after having been cited as being linked to cases of murder and rape in the British courts. It was not available (legally) again until around 2000.

Answer: Anthony Shaffer

The film starred Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine and was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The plot involved a complicated game of bluff and counter bluff between the two characters, with the younger man (Caine) being the lover of the older man's (Olivier) wife. The film was remade in 2007 with Caine playing the senior man and Jude Law as the young man. The plot was changed considerably, too.

Anthony Shaffer was born in Liverpool in 1926. His identical twin, Peter, was also a writer and playwright. As well as 'Sleuth', Anthony Shaffer wrote the screenplays for 'The Wicker Man' (1973) and 'Evil Under the Sun' (1982).

Answer: Edward Fox

The plot of the film came from the fertile mind of writer Frederick Forsyth, who published his book of the same name in 1971. Edward Fox played a professional assassin, with the codename Jackal. His real identity remained a mystery - the man he was thought to be, Charles Calthrop, was a victim of identity theft.

The Fox family have established something of an acting dynasty. Edward and his brother James both had successful acting careers, while Edward's children, Emilia and Freddie, and James's son, Lawrence, have followed their footsteps. Among Edward's other films are 'The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner' (1962), 'Gandhi' (1982) and the 2005 film 'Lassie'. He also appeared on television alongside his nephew in 'Lewis', in 2013.

Answer: Hercule Poirot

The film starred Albert Finney as the famous detective, and Finney was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal. He lost out to Art Carney, who won for 'Harry and Tonto', but Ingrid Bergman won the Best Supporting Actress award for her role as Greta Ohlsson.

Poirot was created by Agatha Christie, and has appeared on both large and small screens on many occasions. Apart from Finney, he has been portrayed by Peter Ustinov and David Suchet, among others. The character of Poirot appeared in more than forty books and short stories written by Christie. She also brought us Miss (Jane) Marple, while Sherlock Holmes was created by Arthur Conan Doyle. G. K. Chesterton was responsible for Father Brown.

Answer: Meat Loaf

The film was based on the stage show created by Richard O'Brien, who also collaborated with the director, Jim Sharman, to write the screenplay. The story was a send-up of the B movies which used to be shown at the cinema, and included a mad scientist and a remote castle.

Meat Loaf played the part of Eddie, who ended up on the menu. This was far from his only film role, as he also appeared in 'Wayne's World' (1992), 'Fight Club' (1999) and 'The Salton Sea' (2002) among many others. He will always be remembered, though, for his multi million selling album, 'Bat Out of Hell', (1977). The other singers listed have all appeared on the big screen.

Answer: Hammer Productions

Hammer Film Productions was known for its horror movies, and 'To the Devil a Daughter' was no exception. It was based on the book written by Dennis Wheatley, who specialised in stories of the occult and black magic. The story involved a group of Satanists and their plans to use a young nun as an incarnation of the prince of hell. Nastassja Kinski played the girl, Richard Widmark was the man trying to protect her and Hammer stalwart Christopher Lee was the wicked priest in charge of the cult.

Hammer's other productions include 'The Curse of Frankenstein' (1957) and 'The Mummy' (1959). Ealing Studios produced mainly comedies. Shepperton Studios brought us a wide variety of films, and became part of Pinewood Studios in 2001. HandMade Films was not founded until 1978.

Answer: Equus

Peter Shaffer was the identical twin brother of Anthony Shaffer, who was also an author and screenwriter. The play was first performed in 1973, and both it and the film adaptation told the story of the efforts made by a psychiatrist to treat a disturbed young man who was deliberately maiming horses.

The psychiatrist, Martin Dysart, was played by Richard Burton with Peter Firth portraying Alan Strang, who blinded the horses. Sidney Lumet was the director and the film also featured Joan Plowright, Jenny Agutter and Eileen Atkins.

Answer: Robert Shaw

Both films were based on books written by Alistair MacLean. In the earlier film the two main roles were played by Peck and David Niven, with Robert Shaw and Edward Fox taking the parts in the 1978. The characters of Mallory and Miller were the only two to feature in both films. The 'Force 10' of the title referred to an American unit led by Colonel Barnsby, played by Harrison Ford. The target was a dam and, needless to say, the mission was eventually successful.

Robert Shaw appeared in numerous Hollywood films as well as those made in his native England. His major roles include the man targeted by Paul Newman and Robert Redford in 'The Sting' (1973), the villain in 'From Russia With Love' (1963) and the character Quint in 'Jaws' (1975).

Answer: Terry Jones

The other Pythons in the film were John Cleese and Terry Gilliam. The story itself was based on a case of mistaken identity, with a young man named Brian Cohen (Graham Chapman) being confused for the Messiah. The film caused controversy and faced allegations of blasphemy, leading to bans in some countries, such as Ireland. Despite, or maybe because of, the controversy the film was very successful. It was funded by HandMade Films, the studio formed by George Harrison, who appeared in the film in a cameo role.

Terry Jones both directed and appeared in the film, including playing the part of Brian's mother. He had already co-directed 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' (1975) with fellow Python Terry Gilliam and went on to direct other, non Python, films such as 'Erik the Viking' (1989) and 'Personal Services' (1987).