John Moulder-Brown

Derren Nesbitt

Roberta Tovey

Sydney Bromley

Kevin Bennett

Ronnie Caryl

Michael Crockett

George Roderick

William Sherwood

Michael Barnes

Jo Jago

David Eady

Harry Robertson

Aivar Kaulins

Kenneth Morgan

Hindle Edgar

Operation Third Form

Children's Film Foundation (CFF)

United Kingdom

CinemaSerf

This is quite an enjoyable caper that sees a group of young school children set up a complex sting operation to trap Derren Nesbitt ("Skinner") and his boss George Roderick who have pinched their antique school bell - and have their sights set on a valuable painting too. It's all the more enjoyable to watch 50-odd years later when looking back on the days when nobody has a mobile phone: the boys use their ingenuity, bicycles, phone boxes, a pram and the good old London bus to keep tabs on their quarry - with codewords and a meticulously planned enterprise - ensuring that they can repatriate their bell and make sure their friendly local rag and bone man escapes the suspicions of the law. It's not an hour long, and I found that it flew by. Sure, the production is all a bit basic and the plot somewhat far-fetched, but as a kid I recall these Children's Film Foundation efforts fondly - and this one still deserves a gander.

Operation Third Form

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