John Chard

It's like we're in a besieged castle, the arrows of the foe striking against the battlements. Adapted from E. Nesbit's much adored novel, this filmic version is directed by Lionel Jeffries and stars Dinah Sheridan, Bernard Cribbins, William Mervyn, Iain Cuthbertson, Jenny Agutter, Sally Thomsett and Gary Warren. Music is by Johnny Douglas and cinematography by Arthur Ibbetson. Rightly thought of as a British classic, story finds three children relocating to Yorkshire after their father has wrongly been imprisoned for treason. Trying to go about their fatherless life in this small Yorkshire village, they find solace in the happenings of the local railway station, and from there action, drama and pending adulthood does beckon. Picture comes with splendid Edwardian detail, of a time long since lost to Britain. Jeffries never once over eggs the Yorkshire pudding, filling out his pic with great dramatic sequences and wonderful coming of age literacy. Boosted by a scintillating turn from a then 18 year old Agutter as the eldest Waterbury sibling holding things together during a one parent crisis, this is a beautiful picture that reminds us of better times. 9/10