Off the Dole

There's more than a whiff of the music halls about this 'merry musical burlesque', as Formby, assorted comic pals, plus The Twelve London Babes and The Twilight Blondes run through their routines in front of a cameraman evidently in a state of rigor mortis. Formby's persona - aggressive, smart alec - is quite different from the one he developed later at Ealing, though his ditties ('With My Little Ukulele in My Hand') sound familiar. The title is catchpenny: after an opening number in a labour exchange, 'The Poor Old Working Man', the film degenerates into a nonsense about Formby running a detective agency. Mainly for students/devotees of the period.