Carry On at Your Convenience

Kenneth Williams is the grandson of the legendary toilet manufacturer "W.C. Boggs" and he is struggling to keep his staff and his business from, quite literally, going down the pan. Aided by his foreman "Plummer" (Sid James) and his son "Lewis" (Richard O'Callaghan) they alight on one last lifeline for the firm. They must manufacture and deliver 1,000 bidets to the Emir of a Middle Eastern nation in just two months! Fortunately, they have the design expertise of "Coote" (Charles Hawtrey) but their pesky shop steward "Spanner" (Kenneth Cope) spots flaws in the allocation of the labour and a strike is called. No bidets, no business - or can a way be found to turn the taps back on at the works? Yes, there is loads of toilet humour that is just a bit predictably silly but the characters are quite well constructed with plenty of room for some politically incorrect behaviour, some smut and a wee bit of how's your father. It's quite interesting also in that it takes more of a swipe at the working class and at some of the ridiculousness of trade unionism and the culture of cutting off your nose to spite your face. Indeed, by the conclusion you have a bit of sympathy for poor old "Boggs". It's simple humour, and though perhaps not one of the more memorable of the series, is still a jolly enough watch.