Today's upload is a rare film from the British National Studios, a comedy drama from 1942 that gave character actor Edward Rigby a rare leading role. Although made during the war, "Let the people sing" is a comedy drama set in an almost mythical pre-war England in which a music hall comic (played by Edward Rigby) and a strange foreign professor (none other than Alastair Sim) come together to help local people battle the authorities who want to close down their local theatre. Since this screening on C4 in the mid 1980s the film has disappeared completely back into obscurity, with no further tv screenings or release in any home video format. The theme of ordinary people rising up against authority is almost a fore-runner of the Ealing comedies to come, with its larger than life characters coming together to fight for a common cause. Portly comedian Fred Emney is marvellous as the local "Lord of the manor", and the whole film must have helped war time audiences forget briefly their current worries. The screenplay of the film is based on a novel by the distinguished author J.B.Priestly, and the title song was recorded by some of the British dance bands, including those of Jack Payne and Jack Hylton. "Let the people sing" is preserved by the BFI but currently remains firmly out of sight in their vaults. I have featured "Let the people sing" twice previously on this channel since 2016 but I hope a third airing will introduce the film to a new audience to appreciate.