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	{{Infobox film		{{Infobox film
	~~\| name = Mother Riley Meets the Vampire~~
	\| image = Mother Riley meets the Vampire.jpg		\| image = Mother Riley meets the Vampire.jpg
	\| caption = Theatrical release poster		\| caption = Theatrical release poster

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	==External links==		==External links==
	~~{{Wikiquote}}~~
	* {{IMDb title\|id=0044925\|title=Mother Riley Meets the Vampire}}		* {{IMDb title\|id=0044925\|title=Mother Riley Meets the Vampire}}

	~~{{John Gilling}}~~

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	[[Category:1952 comedy films]]		[[Category:1952 comedy films]]

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External links: add Category:1950s British films

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{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Mother Riley Meets the Vampire
| image = Mother Riley meets the Vampire.jpg
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = [[John Gilling]]
| producer = John Gilling Stanley Couzins
| screenplay = [[Val Valentine]]
| story = Val Valentine Richard Gordon
| starring = [[Arthur Lucan]] [[Bela Lugosi]]
| music = Lindo Southworth
| cinematography = [[Stanley Pavey]]
| editing = Leonard Trumm
| studio = Fernwood Productions
| distributor = [[Renown Pictures]] (UK) Blue Chip Films (US) [[Columbia Pictures]] (US re-release 1963)
| released = July 1952 (UK) 1963 (US release)
| runtime = 74 minutes
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}

'''''Mother Riley Meets the Vampire''''', also known as '''''Vampire Over London''''' or '''''My Son, the Vampire''''', is a 1952 British [[horror comedy]] film directed by [[John Gilling]], starring [[Arthur Lucan]] and [[Bela Lugosi]] that was filmed at [[Nettlefold Studios]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/43243|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114190139/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/43243|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 January 2009|title=Mother Riley Meets the Vampire|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|accessdate=24 August 2012}}</ref>

This was the final film of the [[Old Mother Riley]] [[film series]], and did not feature Lucan's wife and business partner [[Kitty McShane]], from whom he had separated in 1951.

In 1963, a recut American version called ''My Son, the Vampire'' was released, featuring an introductory segment with a song by American comedian [[Allan Sherman]].

==Plot==
Von Housen seeks to dominate the world from his headquarters in London with an army of 50,000 radar-controlled robots that are powered by uranium. He believes himself to be a vampire and has several young women abducted, most recently Julia Loretti, who has a map to a uranium mine that he needs for his robot army.

At the moment, Von Housen only has one functional robot which is supposed to be shipped to him but, through a mistake, is shipped to Old Mother Riley's store instead, with Mother Riley's package sent to Von Housen. Seeing Mother Riley's address in the label, Von Housen sends his robot to abduct Mother Riley and take her to his headquarters.

==Cast==
*[[Arthur Lucan]] as [[Old Mother Riley]]
*[[Bela Lugosi]] as Von Housen
*María Mercedes as Julia Loretti
*[[Dora Bryan]] as Tilly
*Philip Leaver as Anton Daschomb
*[[Richard Wattis]] as PC Freddie
*[[Graham Moffatt]] as the yokel
*Roderick Lovell as Douglas
*[[David Hurst]] as Mugsy
*[[Judith Furse]] as Freda
*[[Ian Wilson (actor)|Ian Wilson]] as Hitchcock, the butler
*[[Hattie Jacques]] as Mrs. Jenks
*[[Dandy Nichols]] as Mrs. Mott
*[[Cyril Smith (actor)|Cyril Smith]] as Mr. Paine, the rent collector
*[[Lawrence Naismith]] as police sergeant
*[[Bill Shine (actor)|Bill Shine]] as Mugsy's assistant
*[[John Le Mesurier]] as [[Scotland Yard]] officer (uncredited)

==Production==
On the suggestion of producer [[Richard Gordon (film producer)|Richard Gordon]], Bela Lugosi had travelled to the UK to appear in a stage play of ''Dracula'', which failed. He needed money to return to the US. Gordon persuaded fellow producer [[George Minter]] to use Lugosi in a movie in London. Arthur Lucan had starred in a sequence of Old Mother Riley movies and it was felt that Lugosi's presence in the cast might give it a chance of success outside Britain.<ref name="x cert">John Hamilton, ''The British Independent Horror Film 1951-70'' Hemlock Books 2013 p 16-21</ref>

Lugosi was paid $5,000 for his role. The plot was taken from ''[[Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein]]''.<ref name="gordon">[http://www.bmonster.com/cult34.html Tom Weaver, "My Son the Vampire", ''The Astounding B Monster''] accessed 18 March 2014</ref>

Gordon says that although John Gilling was credited as producer, George Minter was the real producer. Filming took four weeks.<ref name="gordon"/>

Richard Gordon recalled that there were plans to shoot additional scenes with Lugosi and without Arthur Lucan for the American market, but the idea was never put into motion.

Gordon also stated that the film emphasised that Lugosi's character was not a real vampire so that it would get a [[U (Central Board of Film Certification)|U certificate]] allowing children, who were Old Mother Riley's biggest audience, to see it.<ref name="gordon"/>

Lucan's understudy [[Roy Rolland]] stood in for him in the more physical stunts in the film.

==Release==
The film was not a success in the box-office and was not released in the US until 1963.<ref name="x cert"/>

It was to have been titled '''''Carry On, Vampire''''' for its American release but [[Anglo-Amalgamated]] successfully sued, with the title changed to ''My Son, the Vampire'' as a tie-in to Allan Sherman's ''My Son, the Folksinger'' hit comedy record.<ref>pp.150-151 Weaver, Tom ''Richard Gordon Interview'' in ''Science Fiction Confidential: Interviews with 23 Monster Stars and Filmmakers'' McFarland, 01/01/2002</ref>

==Reception==
From a contemporary reviews, a reviewer in the ''[[Monthly Film Bulletin]]'' dismissed the film, simply declaring it "Stupid, humourless and repulsive."<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Monthly Film Bulletin]]|title=Mother Riley Meets the Vampire, Great Britain, 1952|page=112|date=August 1952|issue=223|volume=19|publisher=[[British Film Institute]]}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* Frank J. DelloStritto and Andi Brooks, ''Vampire Over London: Bela Lugosi in Britain'' (Cult Movies Pr; 1st Edition, September 2000)

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|id=0044925|title=Mother Riley Meets the Vampire}}

{{John Gilling}}

[[Category:1952 films]]
[[Category:1952 horror films]]
[[Category:1950s comedy horror films]]
[[Category:Films directed by John Gilling]]
[[Category:British comedy horror films]]
[[Category:1952 comedy films]]
[[Category:British black-and-white films]]
[[Category:1950s English-language films]]
[[Category:1950s British films]]

Mother Riley Meets the Vampire - Revision history

Kurt at 01:20, 9 February 2023

Kurt: /* External links */

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Kurt: 1 revision imported

en>Ser Amantio di Nicolao: /* External links */add Category:1950s British films