User reviews

I remember when this movie was being made, I was working on another movie at the time with Sheila White, & like everybody at the time went to see it in the hope that I could identify with it. Although a good story & well acted by all in the movie it lacked something. It should have been shot in London & maybe then it would have captured more of the spirit of the time. What it does have however is a good example of youth growing up & the adventure that the male lead goes on. I still watch this film every year & I wouldn't be without a copy. It has become an essential part of the epoch that it represents with some very funny scenes, notably Capable Caroline & her family where Jamie spends a weekend. Judy Geeson has the female lead & she looked great, I worked with her many years later & we talked about the movie. She told me how the director held her hand in the rushes theatre the day they watched the nude scenes & we laughed, he seemed rather anxious as to what I would think about it, she said. Over all I like the film & it is a must have.

Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush starts out looking like another cheap cash in on the swinging 60s, but the further into the film you get, the more you appreciate its subtleties. Barry Evans is a 17 year old virgin out to get laid, and the film very deftly handles the issues of the Sexual Revolution without pandering or preaching. Judy Geeson is the object of his affection, and though she has a lengthy topless scene she is much more than just a dolly bird. There are some wonderful cameos by Moyra Fraser and Michael Bates (the police inspector in Bedazzled) as Barry's parents, some fascinating footage of Stevenage, one of the idyllic New Towns of the 60s; and overall a marvelous story that mixes elements of Alfie and Billy Liar. Strongly recommended, especially for 60s fans.

I'm a big fan of 60's British music and films and this quirky if slight movie marries both in a peppy attempt to show how swinging England got its nickname.

Of course it's dated greatly particularly its attitudes towards sex and by extension women, but it retains a bright playfulness, backed up by enthusiastic acting from its mostly young cast. Mind you Barry Evans and Judy Geeson aren't quite Tom Courteney and Julie Christie, and a lot of the scenes seem pretty meaningless, but driven by Evans' to-camera pieces from the outset and taking in some other tricksy pseudo-surrealistic dream sequences, flashy camera work, a touch of farce here, a touch of orgy there, while its attractions are a mite thin, at least they're just about present and correct.

The story itself amounts to little more than Evans' trying to get his end away, moving ever steadily up the ladder of the local female population in pursuit of his dream girl Judy Geeson, to learn that she has the same outlook towards men as him, only her dream doesn't stop with him. By the movie's end our fresh-faced hero is just about ready to settle down, bewitched by a beguiling smile from a young Diane Keen, at the age of it seems 18 or 19 at most.

The film is shot in a bright clear fashion, with contemporary pop music prominent in the background - Traffic's title song is ace and gets a few airings throughout. It was funny to see practically all the leads in the popular early 70's sit-com "Doctor at Large" in frame at one point - one almost expected James Robertson-Justice to barge in on the odd scene! There's a mildly surprising frolicsome nude scene between Evans and Geeson near the end, but in truth this is only a little more surprising than seeing Geeson in long trousers just before it - every other female in the film is apparently wearing a mini-skirt.

So then, while being far from the best of the British pop-art cinema of its time, it retains an odd, slightly endearing attraction to the likes of me, who just missed out on being a teen in the 60's. Based on the evidence here, it looks as if it was this generation and not its predecessor that never had it so good (and you can interpret "it" any way you like!)

What is a great movie? Is it The third Man or Citizen Kane because they are "Great"? Classics because of their technique and artistry.Certainly. Some Like It Hot, Duck Soup, 2001, The Shawshank Redemption and Taxi Driver all are great movies for obvious reasons.But there are movies that are personal classics for different reasons. This is one of mine. Some movies, like some songs, have so many personal memories attached that they transcend artistic or dramatic reason. This movie encapsulates all the angst and fun of those oh so brief years of my youth. Forget all those smart ass, know it all films of today, this movie shows how it really was. I recently discovered a video of this movie that I had taped from TV some years ago. Today I watched it. Oh man, where did the time go?

Ok, I'm going to be objective. This is not a great movie in the same way that Citizen Kane is. The acting is, for the most part, pretty awful. The storyline is, by clasic standards, laughable. But that is not important to me. Judy Geeson, Angela Scoula and Vanessa Howard are so beautiful in this movie, British beautiful that is, I have moments of rapture when I watch them. The music, and I have the soundtrack album on vinyl, is '60's British psychedelia. Whenever I hear Andy Ellison sing 'It's been a long time' or the title song, I timeslip back to the days of my youth.

It doesn't really matter to me what anybody else says about this movie, I love it. I just wish I could do it again. Oh yesterday leave me alone. I have no regrets except for those times that slipped by so fast. The seed of memory will grow into a great tree of life as we lived it.Forgive my reminiscences.

It's Been A Long Time.

I saw this when it was newly released and at the time I thought it was wonderful!! What was I thinking? It is a movie very much of it's time. Barry Evans does a reasonable job but is just not good enough. Adrienne Posta was great and stole the movie for me-a very underrated comic actress in my opinion. Judy Geeson was the epitome of "the girl you always wanted to date". Sheila White has a very annoying quality which seems to come through in any part she had. Christopher Timothy was like a lot of guys I knew in the sixties and seventies-brash and worldly. It was such a disappointment that Steve Winwood never actiually appeared in it (I was a huge fan-but I think that The Spencer Davis Group and he parted company mid-production so he could form Traffic (legendary and marvellous band!) I used to go and see SPG locally all the time in the sixties. Mulberry Bush is just an interesting curio now, an insight into the late sixties, better than it seems at first -don't dismiss it, stick with it and I think you will enjoy it.

Teenager Jamie McGregor (Barry Evans) is obsessed with woman. He talks out loud about them andhis thoughts about them and some of his daydreams are visualized. (It's one of those movies where the main character talks to the audience). Despite the fact that he is handsome and outgoing he keeps meeting the wrong kind of women. He secretly pines over beautiful Mary (Judy Geeson)...but does she want what he wants?

Well made and full of energy and full of beautiful British women...but SO dated! The clothes and all the casual sex would not be happening today. The Bed Event at the end will really surprise some audiences. I did like it and Evans was extremely likable...but it ended on a strange note. It's a more realistic ending than I would have liked. Most of the movie keeps veering off into fantasy and I assumed it would have a happy (if unbelievable) ending...but that was not the case. Still this is (purportedly) an accurate picture of swinging London in the late 1960s and will interest some people. If you're watching it for nudity and sex...forget it. There's only casual nudity at the end by Evans and Geeson and the sex is off camera. Still the movie works fine even without that. I've heard that Evans was either gay or bisexual and it does come through. He seemed to hate kissing all the women in the movie! I give it a 7.

Essentially it's just a boring story about an uninteresting sixth-former who fancies a posh girl. It's about unremarkable people who live in an unremarkable town - it's just too ordinary to be interesting. It's neither funny, insightful nor entertaining.

Hunter Davies' first novel of unrequited teenage lust probably resonates with anyone who was ever young. There was always someone at school or college whom everyone fancied but knew was unattainable. This story could be anyone's story who fancied someone, hardly something remarkable enough to constitute a film so what's the point? The highlight of this picture is Judy Geeson's famous topless scene. She's the unattainable posh girl, our hero's ultimate object of desire and that scene is actually vital to the plot - what there is of it. Whilst a topless Judy Geeson jumping up and down is sublime, it's not enough to justify a whole film.

Besides the dull story what's even worse about this film is that it pretends to be something it isn't. The psychedelic opening title sequence and the inclusion of some swinging sixties bands gives the impression it's going to be a reflection of that scene but this could be set anytime from the 50s to now. 1967 was one of those magical years for music. It was the year of the Summer of Love and Sgt. Pepper. That year the groovy people were listening to Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane and The Doors and shortly to Yes so you might therefore be fooled into thinking that this explosion of creativity also happened in the cinema in 1967. How wrong you'd be.

Unlike the music scene in 1967, the film business was still run by 'the man' to use the parlance of the time. The emerging underground and psychedelic bands were expressing themselves by exploring the boundaries of music whereas cinema was in the business of making money. Clive Donner's film lacks any imagination at all. Unlike his fabulous WHAT'S NEW PUSSYCAT or even Hunter Davies' wife's GEORGY GIRL, this has none of the spirit of the sixties. It just falls into that bland exploitative band wagon of pandering to youth culture. It's as representative of late sixties youth culture as those awful Elvis films were of rock n roll.

Other than having a topless scene which is actually intrinsic to the story, unlike the gratuitous nudity that would infest our films in the 70s, there's very little to commend this mundane memoir.

I was 16 in 1968.

I read Hunter Davies' original novel when it first came out, and Jamie was me. I couldn't wait for the film.

And I wasn't disappointed. Full of humour, full of great music, full of the things which were real and important to a late 60s teen and, most of all, full of heart.

Current audiences may find it a touch unsophisticated but then, we all thought we were but we weren't!

Barry Evans sadly never really lived up to the promise he showed in this film, and then died far too young. But if this film was his sole epitaph, it's a good one.

One of the few films that's maybe best known for its theme song (by Traffic), and five minutes in you begin to see why. This is a never-coming-of-age comedy with a cringe-worthy script, from Hunter Davies based on his own novel. Barry Evans plays the most annoying teenager, like evah, though he might have been better had his voice broken. The narrative consists of his attempts to chat up girls and, amazingly, he pulls the lovely Judy Geeson but even when his big moment comes, he's bleats around the bush by jabbering about her dog.

It might sound sweet and indicative of the period but there's a cynical, slightly exploitive vibe about it. Normally in 'swinging 60s' films London provides a picturesque backdrop but this is set in not-so swinging Stevenage, with the local supermarket standing in for the Kings Road. In truth, it never tries to be cool but then it doesn't try to be much else, either.

Here is a 92 minute delight. I recall seeing this film advertised in the 60's & wanting to see it & missed it! So it was with great pleasure I recently acquired a tape & watched it for the first time in 2006! Was any youth as innocent as the kids depicted here? Likely the culture in 1966-67 when this film was released was less innocent. Certainly in the US, where Anti-war demonstrations were growing. But there is no hint of that here, no "gangs", no bad behavior over football, no drugs. Just the Boy wanting the Girl. Barry Evans & Judy Geeson are wonderful as Boy & Girl. The film is famous for some psychedelic scenes, and daring nudity, photographed wonderfully, but it really should be remembered for the light hearted romp it so expertly provides. The 1968 Film review in the NY Times noted the photography but was less enamored with the script. Perhaps seeing it then in the US, when more serious issues so affected youth, Viet Nam, the draft, war, body bags, the reviewers could not forgive the light hearted banter that is so much of the Barry Evans character. Yet that itself I find makes the period the film is trying to depict come very much alive nearly 40 years later. The film is highly entertaining, delightful and well worth seeing for the fresh talent and open eyed wonder of Barry Evans and the delightful young Judy Geeson. Here is a film that ought to be brought out on DVD.A whole generation or two might benefit seeing a more innocent time, and how nice it was then, minus the assorted horrors we now live with!

If you were just to look at the opening credits you would know that this film was made in the sixties. All of the main actors were too old for their respective roles.In terms of sexual content it is very tame compared with films of the early seventies. Sadly two of the leading actors died in sad circumstances. Evans death was mysterious and may have been murder.Secular committed suicide.

I just watched this on DVD having not seen it for about 30 years and very much enjoyed it. It's a simple story and although set in the 1960s it's a timeless one. Every guy in the world remembers being that age and how desperate you are to experience the pleasures of women. The film also honestly depicts how the reality of losing your virginity isn't the mind blowing experience you imagined it would be and leaves you feeling a bit odd. Although reminiscent of the 70s sex comedies that followed this film has much more heart and depth.

It's also a perfect time capsule of Britain at a unique point in it's history. It shows the brave new world of 1960s architecture just before it all turned sour. This was to be the way we were going to live with. Everything made from concrete with people interacting in strange urban spaces. Of course we know that it failed miserably but there was a brief moment when it must have felt like a bright new future. The Victorian architecture that we now value depressed the people of the 1960s and reminded them of the past and of the war.

The overall experience of watching this was a strange one. It is very much of the 60s and yet it also feels incredibly modern as if it was made later but set in the 60s. Barry Evans wouldn't have looked out of place in the 80s with his jeans and white shirt. Of course the girls all look fantastic in their mini skirts and sexy boots. I don't know if suburbia was really as liberated as this in the 1960s but it's fun to imagine that it was.

The film has a special meaning to me, as I was born in Stevenage and still live there today.

The film is all about the sexual exploits of a young lad who is desperate to lose his virginity. Filmed in the 60's during the permissive society days, the fashions and music are a joy to watch.

Judy Geeson plays the love interest, and during one scene strips totally naked, which caused a stir when released! Barry Evans is the lead, called Jamie. Although the plot is nothing fantastic the whole ambiance of the film is great and still fresh today - The movie never seems to date.

Long overdue for a DVD or Video release, can't believe no-ones snapped this title up for release considering its classic status. Always mentioned in movie books and articles.

Watch and enjoy, the fashions, the locations, the music and the youth of the 60's.

Mark

This film is a gem of the mid to late 60's but, at times, difficult to watch as the innocence portrayed by it's warm optimism jars with the reality of these times. I grew up in the 60's and saw that era in the fresh-faced tone of the film. 'Mulberry Bush' takes me back to a childhood Neverneverland. Was life so innocent even in those days? I like to think so but I'm pretty sure it wasn't. The problems we face today have always been with us so I am mystified how even in 1968 it was possible to make a film with such a tenuous grip on life's day to day realities. This film is magical escapism. I was eleven in 1968 and the scene of the three friends boisterously mucking around while walking home is poignant to me since that was my childhood. Suspend cynicism when watching it

This has to be my all time favourite film .

I have watched it time and time again .Its a must for all fans of the 60's its funny and bittersweet and a popart view at a young mans sexual peak.

"runny old linda" "capable caroline" et al are fantastic with a great musical score by Traffic and Steve winwood and Spencer Davis group I cannot believe that this hasnt yet been released on DVD or Video .Luckily for myself i have this taped from tv from 20 years ago but alas the tape is wearing slightly thin now, and a DVD copy would be most greatly appreciated...Come on guys get it out there.People should watch this wonderful cornucopia of pychedelic sexual comedy :)

Cool teenage film which although dated is more thoughtful than most. Encapsulates the period perfectly - full of groovy young people obsessed with the opposite sex undergoing mainly embarrassing experiences. Pop music is used entirely for the soundtrack and this reinforces the aura of youth. The group playing at the church rave is a classic Sixties moment which immortalises the real location of Bowes Lyon House Youth Club. The Stevenage new town locations and the top London fashions add to the shiny glossy feeling of it all. Grounded in the world of council houses and shop work, it occasionally takes on flights of fantasy. The bed shop orgy scene and Judy Geesons bare bottom were considered risqué for the time. Newcomer Barry Evans gives a confident performance as innocent, angst ridden Jamie desperate to lose his virginity. His friend Spike, played surprisingly by a young Christopher Timothy, seems more experienced but is he? Jamie's tribulations with various girls are touching and funny, easily recognisable if you are male of course. Although sexist by todays standards it does retain its period charm and there are several memorable scenes. It has never been released on DVD and nobody seems to know why.

Oh boy does this film bring back memories of my 1960's teenage years. In 1967 I was 17 going on 18 the same age as the character Jamie in this film. I remember going to the cinema to watch this movie after seeing it advertised in a newspaper. Jamie has several encounters with young ladies and gets so called expert backing and advice from his pal Spike. Of all the young women he is involved with Jamie is infatuated with Mary played by Judy Geeson, but their romance is short lived as she is far too much of a free spirit for young Jamie. When I watch this film I am transported back in time bringing back memories of young ladies I have known. Barry Evans was ideal in the part of Jamie McGregor and it was a pity that his career never really took off in films and so sad how his life ended in strange circumstances. I am sure you will enjoy this warm happy film right from the moment Traffic belt out the theme song through the opening titles and until the closing titles when Jamie rides off into the sunset as a conductor on a bus.

Although it was made when I was 2 years old, I thought this film was superb. I remember stumbling home to my parents house after the Pub and seeing it. Maybe I enjoyed this more than I should of because it was filmed on location in my hometown. You can see that life was much simpler in the sixties than it is now, even the geography is less cluttered and more clean looking. Reminded me a lot of the Billy Liar series. This is a definite must see 60's coming of age movie.

I think I need a copy of this classic sixties movie, anyone know where I can acquire one please get in touch. *UPDATE* Managed to get a copy of this superb movie here: http://www.thevideobeat.com/

Enjoyed this 1967 teenage film which can be enjoyable even in the Year 2008. Jamie McGregor, (Barry Evans) plays the role of a hot to trot young man who is girl crazy because he is a virgin and would like the experience of going to bed with a girl. Jamie's great interest is in Mary Glouster), Judy Geeson and she proceeds to tease him by taking most of her clothes off and starting trouble with the film making code. The film starts off with Jamie riding his bike to make deliveries to various homes and every girl who goes by him gets a through examination with his eyes. The film location is in England at a very rich man's mansion and if you like teenage film's this is a good one to view.

One of the more evergreen examples of deliciously dayglow, feel-groovy 60s Brit-cinema, Clive Donner's engagingly vibrant, still-fragrant, luridly flower powered coming-of-age comedy about avidly Girl-hungry Jamie's (Barry Evans) fitful fumblings towards cherry popping has lost little of its quite considerable nubile charm! Set in the landmark, pristine-looking new town of Stevenage, fresh-faced Jamie's earnest ruminations about his overweening angst, and the frequently frustrated attempts to lose his virginity, quite rightly, made the charismatic, cheekily cherubic, Barry Evans a rising star. A lively, witty, insightful text, along with playful, kinetic filmmaking by Donner, a fabulous supporting cast of gifted actors, and while the eminently frug-worthy score, featuring the perfectly perky paisley'd pop of 'Spencer Davis Group' Stevie Winwood, Traffic binds this winningly upbeat film inexorably to the swinging era it was shot, 'Here We Go Around the Mulberry Bush' remains a terrifically entertaining, creatively shot cinematic time capsule that, compellingly, still speaks most eloquently about the singular torment of a needful teenager's tentative sexual awakening!

Okay, it's not a marvellous plot with twists and turns but it's got great music and fond memories for me while I was at college. As it is an English film (even the musicians came from my home town) it related more directly to the experiences I was having at the time whereas most films, being American, were more distant from me.

My recollection of this film is that one Saturday my mother and I were out shopping and decided to take in a movie. I was about 13 at the time. The marquee advertised this film along with a Jane Fonda one so we thought, okay - mulberry bush - must be a kiddie film. Well, the OTHER film was Barbarella! Neither of us said anything but we actually stayed for the double feature. Between this one and Barbarella I thought I would DIE having to sit there next to my mother. Another film of this ilk and era was Three in the Attic. The British always seemed to be able to get away with movies like this: Alfie, Tom Jones, etc. I particularly like the older British films because occasionally you get to see an actor in his or her younger days that we only know now as much older.

I have a real nostalgia for the Britain of the 60's and 70's--which is kind of odd since I actually grew up in America during the 1980's (and I usually regard that era with more nausea than nostalgia). But maybe it was the great British Invasion music (Traffic did the soundtrack to this movie) or maybe it was the movies like this.

Technically, this is a movie about a young man (Barry Evans) trying to "lose it". But, frankly, if "losing it" is your only concern, that's just not that damn hard to do even when you're a teenager (try a prostitute, the town skank, etc.). The conundrum this guy has is that "the ones (he) fancies, don't fancy (him), and the ones that fancy (him), (he) doesn't fancy". To me that's much more of a REAL problem than simply trying to "lose it". He gets together with several beautiful girls. But one is just plain dumb, one is too devoted to her church and (especially) her handsome priest, one is a mentally unstable rich girl with an even more unstable rich family, and then there's one played by Vanessa Howard (there's NOTHING wrong with HER), but that doesn't work out either. It's actually left a little ambiguous whether he "loses it" to any of these girls, but regardless he finally finds true love with "Mary" played by Judy Geeson. But even this isn't your usual Hollywood "rom-com" happily-ever-after thing--it manages to be a little more realistic.

I think this movies idealizes British girls a little bit--the women I've met when I was in Britain reminded me a lot more of "Bridget Jones" (the one in the novel, not a slightly overweight Renee Zellweger with a bad British accent)than they did Judy Geeson or Vanessa Howard. Still, this is quite a collection of British beauties here--Geeson, Howard, Diane Keen, Angela Scoular, Adrienne Posta. They're really only missing Jane Birkin and Gillian Hills (who were a little too old) and Susan George, Linda Hayden, and Jenny Agutter (who would have been a little too young). More importantly, they are all good enough actresses to play rather infuriating characters, such that it's actually conceivable why the protagonist might have given up on them. The one weak link here is undoubtedly the male lead Barry Evans, but he isn't bad, and he is certainly much better than he would be in anything he did after this. The visual psychedelic 60's style and the sexy but still strangely innocent Swinging London ambiance are also highly enjoyable. Recommended.