Blue Murder at St Trinian's

Artist: Ronald Searle
Format: UK Quad (30"x 40")
Condition: Excellent
Year: 1957

Description

Thanks to the box office success and popularity of 1954’s “The Belles of St Trinian’s”, a sequel was inevitable. “Blue Murder at St Trinian’s” was released three years later in 1957 and featured much of the cast from the first film including George Cole as Flash Harry, Joyce Grenfell as Sergeant Ruby Gates and Alastair Sim in a cameo reprisal of his cross-dressing role as Miss Fritton. The mayhem takes place on a much larger scale than the first film with the misfit schoolgirls running riot across Europe. Like the first film, “Blue Murder…” was a success and led to the release of two further St Trinian’s films over the following decade.

As with the previous "St Trinian's" film, the creator and cartoonist Ronald Searle, provided the distinctive artwork for the Quad for “Blue Murder at St Trinian’s”. Though featuring a rather restricted colour scheme of just white, blue and yelow, the design works wonderfully in evoking the film’s hectic, anarchic fun. The European setting is also reflected well with Roman ruins, a Spanish Bull and the Eiffel Tower all appearing on the poster.

 

Searle established something of a "St Trinian's" design monopoly, his illustrations being used for the original quartet of the series as well as for 1980’s “The Wildcats of St Trinian’s”. His style of limited colour use continued with his Quads for the following two St Trinian’s releases, “The Pure Hell of St Trinian’s” and “The Great St Trinian’s Train Robbery” (see below courtesy of www.moviepostermem.com). Like “Blue Murder at St Trinian’s”, these also contained Searle's trademark illustrations which epitomize the series’ chaotic, tongue-in-cheek energy.

 

This poster example has been linen-backed.