Carlton-Browne of the F.O. and The Fictional World of Archives

Feature Film Release Date: 1959

Terry-Thomas stars as Cadogan de Vere Carlton-Browne of the British Foreign Office (the F.O. of the title) and Peter Sellers appears as Prime Minister Amphibulos. Robert S. Young plays the Archivist. Tania Alded reported that

There is a wonderful scene at the beginning of the film with an archivist and archive of the British Foreign Office, which is in the basement, almost looking like a dungeon of sorts, all cobwebby and dusty, with the records arranged alphabetically by country. The door for a certain country opens and there is one bound set of records and... a rat. The book is chewed and frayed along the edges. This scene is great. The movie was made in 1958, but this is the typical impression I think of when I had always thought about archives, even though I always knew this isn't what archives are like.

1. The Internet Movie Database

The Fictional World of Archives

Suggested by Tania Aldred, 2007.03.06. Updated 2007.03.06.