Arthur Lucan

One of the most bizarre and popular British creations of the 1930s and 1940s, scatty and excitable washerwoman Old Mother Riley was created and played by Arthur Lucan in drag, while Lucan's real-life wife, Kitty McShane, played her daughter, Kitty. Their double act topped the bill in the Variety Halls for almost 30 years.

This collection comprises six of the 15 Old Mother Riley films made between 1937 and 1952, following the adventures of the loveable rogue from Ration Row.

In Old Mother Riley In Paris (1938), Old Mother Riley and the lovely Kitty both lose their jobs - and only a timely insurance claim saves them from ruin.

In Old Mother Riley, MP (1939), Old Mother Riley runs foul of her local council and decides to take matters into her own hands by running for Parliament.

In Old Mother Riley's New Venture (1949), the owner of a high-class London hotel mysteriously decides to take a break - and to everyone's surprise he promotes Old Mother Riley straight from kitchen dishwasher to the head of the hotel.

In Old Mother Riley, Headmistress (1950), Old Mother Riley finds herself becoming headmistress of an exclusive girls' finishing school.

Old Mother Riley has always had trouble with the spirits, but in Old Mother Riley's Jungle Treasure (1951) it's the ghost of infamous pirate Captain Morgan that's troubling her, rather than gin.

Finally, Old Mother Riley's last-ever screen adventure, Mother Riley Meets The Vampire (1952), sees one of the most extraordinary team-ups in the history of cinema as America's legendary King of Horror, Bela Lugosi, gets together with one of Britain's most wacky comic creations...

First released: Monday 18th January 2010