Rent Idol on Parade (1959)
3.0 of 5 from 53 ratings
1h 21min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Anthony Newley stars as Jeep Jackson, the 'King of Rock-A-Boogie', who gets called up to do his National Service in this glorious 1959 British musical comedy. Jeep does his best to fit in as a squaddie - but soon there are hordes of screaming pop fans at the barracks gates, the other recruits think he's after their girls - and the C.O.'s daughter (Anne Aubrey) decides he's the boy of her dreams! Jeep's devious manager (Sid James) is determined that a little thing like National Service won't spoil his star's career. He smuggles him out of camp at every opportunity to perform pop concerts and to cut new hit records. But Jeep's Sergeant (William Bendix) is getting very suspicious of what's going on after lights out!
'Idol On Parade' features no less than five songs from Anthony Newley, including 'Idle Rock-A-Boogie', 'Sat'Day Night Rock-A-Boogie', 'Won't Get No Promotion', 'Idle On Parade' and 'I've Waited So Long' - two of which were to become smash chart hits!- Actors:
- William Bendix, Anthony Newley, Anne Aubrey, Lionel Jeffries, Sidney James, David Lodge, Dilys Laye, William Kendall, Bernie Winters, Harry Fowler, Norman Atkyns, Percy Herbert, Sean Kelly, Gordon Needham, Susan Hampshire, Stanley Beard, Martin Boddey, Tom Bowman, Andre Charisse, Carl Conway
- Directors:
- John Gilling
- Producers:
- Irving Allen, Albert R. Broccoli
- Writers:
- John Antrobus, William Camp
- Aka:
- Idle on Parade
- Studio:
- Sony
- Genres:
- Classics, Comedy, Music & Musicals
- Collections:
- Films to Watch If You Like..., Getting to Know..., Getting to Know: Sidney James, The Golden Age of British Pop Musicals, A Brief History of Film..., Top 10 Films By Year, Top 10 Films of 1959, What to Watch Next If You Liked Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 16/02/2026
- Run Time:
- 88 minutes
- Languages:
- English Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Audio commentary with writers Barry Forshaw and Kim Newman (2026)
- Neil Brand on 'Idle on Parade' (2026): in-depth appreciation of the film and its soundtrack by the composer and broadcaster
- Jack of What Trade? (1950): short dramatised film, produced by the Central Office of Information and directed by Margaret Thomson, featuring a teenage Anthony Newley
- Original theatrical trailer
- Image gallery: promotional and publicity material
- World premiere on Blu-ray
