| A Girl Must Live | |
| Director: | Carol Reed |
| Producer: | Edward Black |
| Based On: | novel by Emery Bonett |
| Starring: | Margaret Lockwood Renée Houston Lilli Palmer Hugh Sinclair |
| Music: | Louis Levy Charles Williams (uncredited) |
| Studio: | Gainsborough Pictures |
| Distributor: | 20th Century Fox |
| Runtime: | 92 minutes |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
A Girl Must Live is a 1939 British romantic comedy film directed by Carol Reed that stars Margaret Lockwood, Renée Houston, Lilli Palmer, Hugh Sinclair, and Naunton Wayne. Based on a 1936 novel by Emery Bonett with the same title, the plot features three chorus line girls competing for the affection of a wealthy bachelor. It was one of a series of films Carol Reed made starring Margaret Lockwood.
Running away from her finishing school in Switzerland, Leslie James (a false name taken from a musical star of the past) finds a room in a London boarding house. There she learns from two other lodgers, Gloria and Clytie, that there will be an audition for a new musical that day, at which all three win places in the chorus line. Gloria meanwhile, tipped off by her conman cousin Hugo who plans to make plenty of money out of the deal, has caught the eye of the bachelor Earl of Pangborough. Her roommate Clytie, also keen on what profit she can extract, tries to detach him at the first night party but instead of these brash blonde showgirls he prefers the quiet brunette Leslie.
He invites the whole cast to spend the weekend at his country mansion, just so that he can get closer to Leslie. Despite spirited competition from Gloria and Clytie, manipulation from Hugo, and hostility from the Earl's aunt, she keeps his interest. Terrified however that she will be exposed as a runaway schoolgirl using a false name, she flees the house in the middle of the night. Abandoning his guests, the Earl gives chase and his pursuit ends with the two marrying.
The film was based on a novel by Emery Bonnett published in 1937.[1] [2]
Gaumont British bought the rights and decided to make the film as one of their 12 "A class" features for 1937-38, made with an eye on the US market. Anna Lee and Lilli Palmer were the original stars.[3] [4] [5] Eventually Margaret Lockwood and Renee Houston were announced as stars.[6]