The Last of the Blonde Bombshells
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| The Last of the Blonde Bombshells | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover of The Last of the Blonde Bombshells |
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| Directed by | Gillies MacKinnon |
| Produced by | Su Armstrong |
| Written by | Alan Plater |
| Starring | Judi Dench Ian Holm Leslie Caron Olympia Dukakis Cleo Laine Joan Sims Billie Whitelaw June Whitfield |
| Music by | John Keane |
| Cinematography | Richard Greatrex |
| Editing by | Pia Di Ciaula |
| Release date(s) | 2000 |
| Running time | 84 mins |
| Country | UK |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Last of the Blonde Bombshells is a 2000 television film made by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Home Box Office (HBO).
Contents |
[edit] Tagline
- It's never too late for an encore.
[edit] Synopsis
After her husband's death, a widow (Judi Dench) decides she wants to re-kindle her musical roots. Encouraged by her grand-daughter, she seeks out the almost all-female band she played with during World War II. The one non-female in the troop was a cross-dressing drummer (Ian Holm) with whom she still is friends. With his help, they start tracking down their old cronies - and find some dead and some mentally incompetent. Slowly the band grows, but their sound is lacking. When the singer (Cleo Laine) is added to the mix, everything comes together.
[edit] Cast
| Character | Current day character played by | Wartime character played by | Instrument | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth | Judi Dench | Romola Garai | Saxophone | |
| Patrick | Ian Holm | Grant Ibbs | Drums | |
| Madeleine | Leslie Caron | Kate Maberly | ||
| Dinah | Olympia Dukakis | Lucy Voller | Trombone | |
| Gwen | Cleo Laine | Ria-Belinda Mundell | Singer | |
| Betty | Joan Sims | Saskia Vale | Last acting perfromance of Joan Sims | |
| Evelyn | Billie Whitelaw | Laura Crossley | ||
| Annie | June Whitfield | Patricia Valentine | ||
| Vera | Thelma Ruby | Clemency Burton-Hill | ||
| Joan | Lucy Pawlby | Died in World War 2 | ||
| Joanna | Millie Findlay | Elizabeth's granddaughter | ||
| Patricia | Felicity Dean | |||
| Edward | Nicholas Palliser | |||
| Leslie | Valentine Pelka | |||
| Carol | Carla MacKinnon | |||
| Paul | Dom Chapman | street musician | ||
| Hibbert | John Warnaby | |||
| McNab | James Cosmo | |||
| Scobie | Harry Jones | The Wee Man | ||
| Al | Peter Youngblood Hills | |||
| Mum | Kathryn Pogson | Young Elizabeth's Mother |
[edit] Awards and nominations
[edit] Wins
- BAFTA Award for Best Actress (Judi Dench)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV (Judi Dench)
[edit] Nominations
[edit] Emmy Awards
- Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie (Judi Dench)
- Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie (Ian Holm)
- Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
- Outstanding Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
- Outstanding Hairstyling for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special
[edit] Screen Actors Guild Awards
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries (Judi Dench)
[edit] American Comedy Awards
- Funniest Female Performer in a TV Special (Judi Dench)
[edit] Trivia
Alan Plater also wrote a stage play based on the film, BLONDE BOMBSHELLS OF 1943, which premiered at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in 2003. A new version co-produced by the Bolton Octagon Theatre and Hampstead Theatre opened in 2006 and the play is touring the UK in 2007.
