Smashing Time (1967)

Smashing Time is a 1967 British satirical comedy directed by Desmond Davis, written by George Melly, and produced by Partisan/Selmur Productions. It skewers the media‑driven phenomenon of Swinging London through the misadventures of two provincial girls who come to the capital seeking fame and fortune.

Plot

Two young women from Northern England, plain‑spoken Brenda and flamboyant Yvonne, arrive in London and quickly become caught up in the city’s fashion, celebrity, and media machine. Their separate trajectories—one into modeling and one into lowly urban survival—become a comic, sometimes bittersweet commentary on commercialization and cultural fads.

Principal cast and crew

• Rita Tushingham as Brenda; Lynn Redgrave as Yvonne.
• Michael York, Ian Carmichael, Anna Quayle, Irene Handl, Jeremy Lloyd in supporting roles.
• Director: Desmond Davis; Writer: George Melly; Music by John Addison; Cinematography by Manny Wynn.

Production and style

The film is a broad satire of 1960s London celebrity culture, mixing surreal set‑pieces and musical episodes with pointed social mockery. Its character names and some comic touches borrow playful nonsense imagery (echoes of Lewis Carroll) and the soundtrack includes contemporary rock elements performed by groups such as Tomorrow.