Passport to Pimlico
(1949)

Country: UK

Genre: Comedy

Synopsis

When documents are discovered that show that Pimlico belongs to the House of Burgundy, and that consequently the British government has no legal jurisdiction over the area, the inhabitants, sick of rationing, petty rules and bureaucratic restrictions, tear up their coupon books, allow pubs to stay open at all hours, and generally set about creating a libertarian utopia in the heart of London. However, the government responds by setting up a vexatious Customs border round the area. The Pimlicans (who now see themselves as 'Burgundians') are not to be defeated that easily, though, and retaliate by stopping tube trains below ground when they reach the border of Pimlico, and demanding to see the passengers' passports! This forces the government into talks with the fledgeling statelet. But as Pimlexit negotiations falter, the government decides to turn off the water supply to the area. Meanwhile, the wider nation has divided down the middle, with one half of the population cheering plucky little Pimlico for defying the Whitehall bully, whilst the other half insisting that there should be no 'appeasement' of the rebels. As the Pimlicans begin to run short of water in the sweltering heatwave of 1947, is their defeat inevitable?

Notes

• Produced by Ealing Studios