He Snoops to Conquer

When the local council is ordered to survey the population, they pass the job off to dogsbody George Formby. When the survey shows the local government is hated, they have George unknowingly dispose of most disapproving forms -- except for 5%, since even the Nazis allow 2% opposition in their elections -- and eventually George gets blamed for that. In the meantime, George becomes entangled with eccentric inventor Robertson Hare, his daughter, Elizabeth Allan and several assembly-line gadget gags.

It's directed by Marcel Varnel, master of cut-glass farce, which rarely had any real-life consequences. Usually the enemies are official dunderheadedness and Nazi spies. Here, however, the local council is venal and looking out for their own economic interests. Was ths intended to reflect the growing dissatisfaction with the nominally National -- in reality, Tory -- war government, which would lead to their massive and unpredicted defeat in the next general election?

George sings only three songs here. During the war he was undoubtedly the most popular British movie star, but a shift was coming. He would make only two more films.