I love the Carry on film franchise, so this was the perfect book for me. It’s not so much filled with facts, figures and trivia, although there are lots of all of these, but a comprehensive look at the franchise as a whole. It begins right back where it started and goes right through to present day. It doesn’t however deal with each film individually, but groups them together in chapters which are interspersed with actor spotlights on some of the main actors and actresses that we know so well.

The chapters were really interesting, and I was presented with some information that I hadn’t heard before. As I read, I could picture the different films or actors and could hear the quotes being spoken. The actor spotlights were also interesting, but I did find that there was some duplication from these spotlight sections into the main chapters and vice versa. I’m sure I also spotted a couple of little mistakes of the wrong film title when talking about a scene! My opinions on what the best Carry On film was differed hugely from the author who seemed to pick films that I would end up at the bottom end of my list! Everyone has their personal opinion though, but I did find that lot of book time was devoted to the earlier films and not enough to the some of the classic golden era Carry On films which surely must be the most popular and well known – Carry on At Your Convenience, Henry and Girls only had brief mentions yet huge sections devoted to Carry on Spying, Cowboy and Jack!

All in all, this was a great look back on one of the most well-known and well-loved series of films ever! I’ve watched them all so many times and could probably recite them in my sleep, but it was lovely to hear some of the stories from behind the scenes. I did thoroughly enjoy reading this book and it brought back many happy memories of my childhood (and adult years!) of films which I can and have watched over and over again! Can I say what my favourite Carry on films are of all time...probably not as there are just too many to choose from. I think I can safely add Carry on Nurse, Cruising, Cleo, Camping, Abroad and of course, Doctor Again (thanks to the great Jim Dale) right to the very top of the list! I was surprised at the idea that a new Carry on may be on the cards…did they learn nothing from Columbus?!! Hopefully, we can be left with the love and laughs from the 31 films already made! This book would be a great read for any Carry on fan – would recommend!

An interesting look behind the curtains on the Carry On team and their exploits

As someone who grew up with the Carry On films, it was quite eye opening to read about the close knit crew and the problems that various members had in the private lives that I never noticed when watching the films. Again, I must have been of a young age when watching as I didn’t realise how formulaic the plots were.

I sometimes did not have the same sense of marvel and engagement as the author but appreciated the narrative. A good book to read if the Carry on films resonate but probably not for the casual reader unless you want some background to figures you might know of, but not know.

Frost has created a blanket over view of the 'Carry On' series that reveals little and gets very repetitive. If one is very familiar with the series, there's really little new here. The book isn't far beyond the 'trivia' in an IMDB column. Those more lightly familiar can gleam a bit from the writing. Thing is, there is too much of a re-cap of the films. Rule of thumb is, when writing about something else, write something else.

Most of the rest, outside the biographies of the main troupe, are happy quotes that shed little light of the lot of films. Sadly, instead of enlightened tidbits sprinkled throughout, there are very few. Not helping this review is my recent reading 'Born to be Hanged', via NetGalley, of the Sharp pirate gang and their adventures in the Caribbean in the late 1600s. I am floored by how fascinating the entire story was as all sorts of wonderful trivial bits and pieces are spread throughout, that has one react, "I didn't know that!". Why did I barely learn more of the production of the 'Carry on' set of films? Why so many overly repetitive happy quotes? After a couple chapters, i was well aware how much all in the production had a good time. Cutting much of that and plunging into revelations unknown at this time of the 'Carry On' series would've been a better road to take.

The handful of biographies Frost includes are also lightly handled with more revealed than in the film making. Still, there is a great effort by Frost to hold back. I wonder why? I don't want to read a tell all book, but was hoping for something far more revelatory than this volume.

Y'see, I had never watched a 'Carry On' film less than a year ago. That had me curious and occasionally reading articles of Peter Rogers, Gerald Thomas, writers and the stars. Even ran a few of the video biographies of the stars. As one who has studied humor writing for most of my life, I'd always shied from the bawdy 'Carry On' series. Not much for bawdy. So, I leapt into the 'Carry On' series last year - late as it is.

Seeing this book available on NetGalley, I leapt into it, too! Hoping to learn more of the machinations of producing the 'Carry On' series and all involved. I'm disappointed in the book and hope for something more thorough in the future.

I wonder if the trouble was the author being too close to those connected to the film and a wariness of upsetting any of them?

I really like the defense Frost writes of the P.C. nonsense complaints of the films. This she does a fine job writing. Her points are excellent and refreshing. What she writes applies to all produced creative endeavors created prior to the newly repressive views of recent years. Hopefully, enlightenment is near and we creatives can get back to better work again!
I'd suggest Frost write a book of this current plague on creativity. She'll just have to take an aggressive stance, though.

Again, if one comes into this book with little knowledge of the 'Carry On' series, then carry on with the book. Otherwise...

Bottom line: I don't recommend the book. 5 out of ten points.

I love the carry on movies so was really happy when I got this from my wish list. It is really interesting read and you can tell Caroline Frost has done lot of research on the carry on cast and writers. For me I was more interested in reading about the cast of the carry on and wanted to found out more about them and how they started at Pine studios. If you like carry on films you will enjoy this carry on regardless and you find out more about the writers to. It was really nice to see pictures of them all in set and on the films. Thank you NetGalley for letting me reading this book.

Seeing this book made me so happy.

I grew-up watching '60s television from the U.K. so reading about the programs was really interesting.

Fans in the U.S. likely saw many of these shows on PBS. If so, this book will definitely bring back memories!

A lot of Research has been done hen writing this book and you can tell a great read and it has brought back many happy memories of watching these classic films.

A British institution. I grew up laughing at their jokes, antics and double entendres. Of its time but important to British culture. Interesting pen portraits of the most important carry on actors and a glimpse of behind the scenes too. Enjoyed it.

Well researched book detailing all the films and the lives of the stars. As a big fan of the carry on films I really enjoyed this book. Bringing back great memories of great films.

Carry On Regardless by Caroline Frost is a well-structured analysis of all 31 Carry On films. The chapters either deal with a group of films, grouped chronologically, or focus upon an individual actor. Charles Hawtrey, Kenneth Williams, Sid James, Joan Sims, Hattie Jacques, Jim Dale and Barbara Windsor each get a chapter to themselves. Those short biographies of the seven stars are nicely written but I wish they’d been longer.

The author acknowledges that the films don’t conform to modern expectations: they are politically incorrect and cliché-ridden. However, Frost is determined to refute the claim that they portray women in a poor light. She writes “[…] all the female actresses I’ve spoken to who participated in the Carry On films have only good things to say about their time on set” and Gerald Thomas’s daughter affirms he “loved and respected women.” I think Frost is conflating two things here: the treatment of the actresses and the portrayal of female characters. Think of any film, e.g. Harry Potter or the James Bond series. Some characters are heroes (hurray!) and some are villains (boo!). No one is suggesting that Tom Felton was treated any less respectfully on set than Daniel Radcliffe, nor that he was at all inferior as an actor, but he still played a horrible person. Is it not possible that Babrbara Windsor, Joan Sims and others were given their due on set as great stars but that the characters they played (very well) were (to use Frost’s words) “dreamy sexpots or grim-faced battleaxes”? Yes, the female characters sometimes displayed more intelligence than the men, e.g. Carry On Cabby, but that was the exception.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book: it brought back many happy memories of my teens and earlier – and I would happily watch many of the films again. They are historic documents that show us Britain in the fifties, sixties and seventies: the fashions, the cars, the slang. However, I would now watch them with a modern perspective, recognising that we humans have matured and the attitudes displayed in the films are no longer acceptable. It’s like watching a silent movie like Battleship Potemkin: we can still appreciate it as a great achievement for the time it was made, but we wouldn’t do it like that now.

#CarryOnRegardless #NetGalley

Firstly, I'm a huge fan of the Carry On films and their actors. I never tire of the bawdy not-politically-correct humor, filled with risque elements, double entendre comments, and saucy seaside postcard gags. A British institution for many years, still watched by generation after generation for its raw, sometimes slapstick but always funny humor.

As the book relates, it was a very different world sixty years ago when the first film arrived in our cinemas. The space race had begun as Sputnik 1 fell to earth and Elvis Presley joined the Army.

The book delves into the personal lives beyond the public and theatrical personas of the actors. Sometimes sad and sometimes happy but always interesting.
It is a beautiful tribute to post-war comedy cinema, well researched and written. Making it a joy to read for anyone interested in this series of comedic adventures.

In many ways, this is quite a sad tale as many of the actors who provided their audiences with so many laughs were quite sad and lonely in their personal lives. Definitely a recommended read.

Thanks to #NetGalley, #PenandSwordBooks, and #CarolineFrost for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Well researched and readable. Interesting chapters on some of the Carry On stars and how the films portrayed women. Don't go expecting a film by film precis and critique, however, you do get the author's view and that of many of those involved in the films. The recent interviews with surviving cast including Bernard Cribbins are a real treat and bonus.

Perfect read for anyone who has ever watched a Carry On.

A must read for any Carry On film fan. Details, descriptions and photos from all the great classic films. Bringing back great memories and recollections of the comedy genius that is the Carry On franchise. Includes all your favourite Carry On actors - Sid James, Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Williams. A real feel good book.

The completely updated story of Carry On, Britain's largest film franchise, all the way from the gentle capers of the 1950s, through the raucous golden age of the 1960s, to its struggles in the decades (not plural) that followed.

We take a happy walk down memory lane to enjoy again Sid James's cheeky chuckle, Kenneth Williams' elongated vowels, Charles Hawtrey's bespectacled bashfulness and Barbara Windsor's naughty wiggle.

It all seemed effortless, but exclusive interviews with the series' remaining stars including Bernard Cribbins, Angela Douglas and Kenneth Cope shed new light on just how much talent and hard work went into creating the laughs. For the first time, the loved ones of some of the franchise’s biggest names - on and off screen - share their personal memories from this unique era.

Was Carry On really as sexist, racist and bigoted as critics claim? Three of the films' female stars explain why they never felt remotely exploited, plus we take a fresh look at some of the series' biggest titles and discover that, in reality, they were far more progressive than their detractors would have you believe.

Finally, with constant talk about new films, fresh productions and tantalising speculation about a brand new era of Carry On, we ask - does this unique series still have legs?

A brilliant read for all fans of the carry on series.

Love them or hate them the Carry On films, like Hammer horror, the James Bond films, and the Harry Potter franchise, form a huge chunk of British film and cultural history. Many of the stars of the films may be dead but the films themselves are immortal.
Caroline Frost's splendid book reads like a labour of love, perhaps rightly so, as the films were in many ways labours of love. It isn't about facts and figures, it's an insight into all that went into creating Carry On, the triumphs and the tears, the pain and the glory.
I knew Peter Rogers and Betty E. Box for many years. I'm sure they would approve and open a bottle of champagne to celebrate Caroline's book. Cheers Caroline!

Detailed book looking at the carry on series of films it is very informative about the origins of the idea and through the years of the different films and some chapters highlight some of the stars of the film and their backgrounds and how they ended up in the films.

An excellent dip into the world of the much-loved series and its regular cast of greatly missed comic icons

I’m happy to go out on a limb and say that regardless of perceived criticism about sexism, racism, stereotypes etc etc, I love the Carry Ons. They’re fun. Take them for what they are and don’t ascribe the labels that condemn without first considering why they remain perennially popular. I saw my first Carry on at the cinema in 1958. As a kid, I loved The Army Game and Carry On Sergeant was a film extension of the tv series. It was funny and some 60 years on, it remains relevant and entertaining.

Caroline Frost’s book is filled with insight into a British Institution. Yes, it was formulaic. But a formula that worked. The first five films remain my favourite, but over the years I’ve better appreciated the spoof and high camp element of later productions which took a rise out of everything imaginable. At one level, the humour may appear lavatorial, sexist and stupid. But below that, it’s really very clever; sometimes satirical look at ‘our’ society. Imperialistic, petty, unionist, exploitative and superb parody. One liner after one liner gets laughs in film after film and the big surprise is the shoestring budget.

I absolutely loved this book. It puts every production, along with the cast, into perspective and adds a whole new dimension to the actors and writers. Packed with trivia, it’s actually an important slice of film history and one that also reflects social attitudes as they changed through the 1960s. If you’ve never seen a Carry On, read this and then watch a few and come to your own conclusion. If you like the films, there’s a lot of insight and detail about production values which I found engrossing. If you don’t like Carry Ons…you don’t understand what you’re missing.

Well researched and an easy and fascinating read, my thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley. Loved it.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

This book has everything you Ned to know it’s interesting to read, from how the the films first started to the unlucky ones.

Reading this book, makes you want to visit the studio where all the films were made, and feel like you was there in between the characters.

It also mentions the wages they received and how women were treated in those films as well as how the audience would feel watching them if they were made still.

I recommend this book.

Wonderful warm discussions and retrospective of the films. Especially loved the character spotlights, so many iconic actors with interesting stories. For a UK library this would be a must purchase. For an American audience it might be a little too niche, I'm an ex-pat so very familiar with the films. I absolutely loved it.

Interesting and detailed
Everyone knows the ‘Carry On’s’ most of us loved/still love them and even if we don’t watch the whole thing we linger for 5 mins or so as while flicking through channels we see one appear, classic comedy moments and actors from a very different time, images and jokes that stay with us forever, oh they weren’t perfect, we know that but they made a lot of people happy for a long time and continue to do so, seemingly able to bypass the comedy PC revolution and ‘carry on regardless’
This book is fascinating, all films and big players talked about, from the inception to the ‘golden years’ to the last few ‘unfortunate’ films, everything you want/need to know is here and told in a warm, frank way
It made me want to go to Pinewood to look at the places these films were made in ( some still used to this day ) and you could feel the camaraderie that existed between the actors, it must have been great fun to be a part of
The author also writes about aspects such as actors pay, the treatment of women in the films and the PC world of humour now and how these films would fare now
A fascinating documentation of a comedy era long gone but still with us, very enjoyable read

10/10
5 Stars