Bedknobs and Broomsticks

Bedknobs and Broomsticks is a 1971 American musical fantasy film directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by Bill Walsh for Walt Disney Productions. It is based upon the books The Magic Bedknob; or, How to Become a Witch in Ten Easy Lessons (1943) and Bonfires and Broomsticks (1947) by English children's author Mary Norton. The film, which combines live action and animation, stars Angela Lansbury, David Tomlinson, John Ericson, and introducing Ian Weighill, Cindy O'Callaghan, and Roy Snart.

During the early 1960s, Bedknobs and Broomsticks entered development when the negotiations for the film rights to Mary Poppins (1964) were placed on hold. When the rights were acquired, the film was shelved repeatedly due to the similarities with Mary Poppins until it was revived in 1969. Originally at a length of 139 minutes, Bedknobs and Broomsticks was edited down to almost two hours prior to its premiere at the Radio City Music Hall. As with Mary Poppins, the Sherman Brothers composed the film's songs.

The film was released on December 13, 1971, to mixed reviews from film critics, some of whom praised the live-action/animated sequence. The film received five Academy Awards nominations winning one for Best Special Visual Effects. This was the last film released prior to the death of Walt Disney's surviving brother, Roy O. Disney, who died one week later. It is also the last theatrical film Reginald Owen appeared in before his death next year in 1972; his last two acting credits were for television.

In 1996, the film was restored with most of the deleted material re-inserted back into the film. A stage musical adaptation has been produced. The musical had its world premiere at the Theatre Royal, in Newcastle upon Tyne, on 14 August 2021 before embarking on a UK and Ireland tour, until May 2022.

Fictional History
"Towards the end of his life, Astoroth kept animals in cages in search for the spells that would make them more like humans. The legend is that finally the animals rebelled at the experiment, killed Astoroth and stole many of his powers." This included the subsituitary locomotion spell on Astoroth's star pendant for his necklace. "They found a ship, sailed away and were never heard of again. However there is a final notation in [the Bookman's copy of The Spells of Astoroth] saying that in the seventeeth century a shipwrecked lascar was taken from the sea half mad with thirst and exposure to the sun. Before he died, he swore he had seen an island ruled by animals." The island's name is the Isle of Naboombu.

The Bookman searched for the island with no luck finally convinced that it doesn't exist. He sells the The Spells of Astoroth to Mr. Emelius Browne but convinced that Browne gave him a fake coin, tries to take the book back. The book's torn in half and Browne runs off with the majority of the pages with the spells while the Bookman keeps the half with information of the star pendant and notation of the island. Browne obtains a large house, empty because the family left it in fear of a dropped bomb going off. A children's book, Isle of Naboombu, talking about said island, also ends up in the house's nursery for unknown reasons. Mr. Browne copies spells from the The Spells of Astoroth to create a sham mail-in magic course, which he sells to Miss Eglantine Price, who has always a bit of an act for witchcraft, for whom common spells and simple charms came naturally. Thus Mr. Browne accidently taught someone real magic. Miss Price intends to use the substituitary locomation spell mentioned in the course to help in the war effort against the Axis forces.

Plot
In August 1940, during the Blitz, three children named Charlie, Carrie, and Paul Rawlins are evacuated from London to Pepperinge Eye near the Dorset coast where they are placed in the reluctant care of Miss Eglantine Price, who agrees to the arrangement temporarily. The children attempt to run away back to London, but after observing Miss Price flying on a broomstick, they change their minds. Miss Price reveals she is learning witchcraft through a correspondence school with hopes of using her spells in the British war effort against the Nazis, and offers the children a transportation spell in exchange for their silence. She casts the spell on a bedknob, and adds only Paul can work the spell, as he is the one who handed the bedknob to her. Later, Miss Price receives a letter from her school announcing its closure, thus preventing her from learning the final spell. She convinces Paul to use the enchanted bed to return the group to London, and locate Professor Emelius Browne.

Browne turns out to be a charismatic showman who created the course from an old book, and is shocked to learn the spells actually work. He gives the book to Miss Price, who is distraught to discover the final spell, "Substitutiary Locomotion", is missing. The group travels to Portobello Road to locate the rest of the book. After an exchange with an old bookseller, Miss Price learns that the spell is engraved on the Star of Astoroth, a medallion that belonged to a sorcerer of that name. The bookseller explains that the medallion was taken by a pack of wild animals, given anthropomorphism by Astoroth, to a remote island called Naboombu. A 17th century lascar had claimed to have seen Naboombu, but the bookseller never found it. Paul confirms its existence by revealing a storybook he found in Mr. Browne's playroom.

The group travels to Naboombu a land in a lagoon; there, the bed goes underwater, where Mr. Browne and Miss Price enter a dance contest and win first prize. Just then, the bed is fished out of the sea by a bear, who informs the group that no human is allowed on the island by royal decree. They are brought before the island's ruler, King Leonidas, who is wearing the Star of Astoroth. Leonidas invites Mr. Browne to act as a referee in a football match. The chaotic match ends in Leonidas' self-proclaimed victory, but Mr. Browne swaps the medallion with his referee whistle as he leaves, and the group escapes.

Back home, Miss Price exercises the spell, which imbues inanimate objects with life. When Miss Price is informed that the children can be moved to another home, she decides to let them stay, realizing she has come to love them and vice versa. The children declare they want Mr. Browne to be their father, but Mr. Browne, wary of commitment, bids goodbye to the group and attempts to take a train back to London. A platoon of Nazi German commandos land on the coast via U-boat as part of an exercise and invade Miss Price's house, imprisoning her and the children in the local museum. At the train station, Mr. Browne fends off two Germans cutting phone lines and heads back to Miss Price's house where he uses the white rabbit spell that he taught Miss Price so he can disguise himself to avoid the Germans. He finds Miss Price and the children at the museum and inspires Miss Price to use the spell to enchant the museum's exhibits into an army. The army of knights' armor and military uniforms chases the Germans away, but as they retreat, they destroy Miss Price's workshop, ending her career as a witch. Though disappointed her career is over, she is happy she played a small part in the war effort.

Shortly afterwards, Miss Price has officially adopted and committed herself to raising the children, Mr. Browne also made a commitment to becoming the father of the children and moved in with them. Mr. Browne enlists in the army and departs with the local Home Guard escorting him, promising the children he will return soon. Paul reveals he still has the enchanted bedknob, hinting they can continue with their adventures.

Cast/ Characters

 * Angela Lansbury as Miss Eglantine Price. Miss Price is initially a somewhat reclusive woman, reluctant to take in children from London as she believes they will get in the way of her witchcraft, which she prefers to keep secret but hopes to use to bring World War II to an end. However, she bonds with the children and falls in love with Mr. Browne during their journey.
 * David Tomlinson as Mr. Emelius Browne. Introduced as "Professor Browne," the title by which Miss Price knows him, he is running a Correspondence College of Witchcraft based on what he believes to be "nonsense words" found in an old book. When Miss Price and the children find him in London, he is revealed to be a street performer and con artist, and not a very good one. He is, however, a smooth talker, which proves useful on the group's adventures, and believes in doing everything "with a flair." As the adventures unfold, he finds himself developing an attachment to Miss Price and the children, a feeling he struggles with.
 * Ian Weighill as Charles "Charlie" Rawlins. Charlie is the eldest of the orphaned Rawlins children; eleven, going on twelve, according to Carrie, an age which Miss Price calls "The Age of Not Believing." Accordingly, he is initially cynical and disbelieving of Miss Price's magical efforts, but comes around as time goes on; it is at his initial suggestion that Ms. Price uses the Substitutiary Locomotion spell on the museum artifacts.
 * Cindy O'Callaghan as Carrie Rawlins. Slightly younger than Charlie, she takes on a motherly attitude toward her brothers, especially Paul. She is the first to encourage a friendly relationship between Miss Price and the children.
 * Roy Snart as Paul Rawlins. Paul is about six; his possession of the bedknob and the Isle of Naboombu children's book lead to the group's adventures as well as the eventual solution to the quest for the Substitutiary Locomotion spell. Paul is prone to blurting out whatever is on his mind, which occasionally leads to trouble.
 * Roddy McDowall as Mr. Rowan Jelk, the local clergyman. Deleted scenes reveal Mr. Jelk to be interested in marrying Miss Price, largely for her property.
 * Sam Jaffe as the Bookman, a mysterious criminal also in pursuit of the Substitutiary Locomotion spell. It is implied that there is some history and bad blood between him and Mr. Browne.
 * Bruce Forsyth as Swinburne, a spiv and associate of the Bookman's who acts as his muscle.
 * Tessie O'Shea as Mrs. Jessica "Jessie" Hobday, the local postmistress of Pepperinge Eye and chairwoman of the War Activities Committee.
 * John Ericson as Colonel Heller, leader of the German raiding party which comes ashore at Pepperinge Eye.
 * Reginald Owen as Major General Sir Brian Teagler, commander of the local Home Guard.
 * Arthur Gould-Porter as Captain Ainsley Greer, a British Army captain who comes from HQ in London to inspect the Home Guard and becomes lost in the area. He is constantly running into locals who suspect him of being a Nazi in disguise.
 * Hank Worden as Old Home Guard Soldier (uncredited)
 * Cyril Delevanti as Elderly farmer Alan Hewitt as a Soldier

Voices/ Animals


 * Lennie Weinrib as King Leonidas, a lion who is the ruler of the Isle of Naboombu. He is a devoted soccer player with a fearsome temper, as well as a notorious cheat who is known to make up the rules as he goes along – according to Paul's book.
 * Lennie Weinrib also voices the Secretary bird, a prim and proper type who often bears the brunt of King Leonidas' temper.


 * Dallas McKennon as Fisherman Bear. a brown bear who is a sailor and fisherman on the Isle of Naboombu. He is the one who pulls the bed, with Miss Price's group on it, out of the lagoon with his fishing pole, and takes them to see the King after warning them of his temper.
 * Bob Holt as Codfish, a denizen of the Naboombu lagoon who judges the underwater dance contest.

Locations

 * England
 * London
 * Portobello Road
 * Pepperinge Eye
 * Museum: A museum that runs as a makeshift site for moving children fleeing the London Blitz. The protagonists meet back up there during the Nazi attack and revive the suits of armor to fight.
 * Price's cottage
 * Isle of Naboombu: An Island reminiscent of The Island of Doctor Moreau in origin.
 * Beautiful Briny Sea
 * Land

Vehicles

 * The bed with the magic bedknob
 * U-boat

Comparison to other versions

 * Unique: The story is based off the books, The Magic Doorknob & Bonfires & Broomsticks and most of the story takes place off the island.
 * Terror Is a Man (1959 film): The creature(s) escape the island after killing their creator.