- Rupert Street, a piano player and composer, decides to write a musical and marry before he reaches his thirtieth birthday. One minor problem: he'll be 30 in six weeks...
- British musician/composer Rupert Street is turning thirty on September 13th, six weeks away. He sees turning thirty as a milestone which will define the success or failure of his life. As such, he plans to write a stage musical by then, even signing a contract with his agent Oscar to hire the necessary crew to stage it by his birthday. The other goal for his thirtieth birthday is to get married, despite having no potential "Mrs. Street" in his life. He is hoping that it will be Louise Hammond, a young woman who has just moved into the same rooming house in which he lives. His hope is despite Louise already having a boyfriend named Paul and she stating early in their meeting that she has no intention of getting married. As Rupert pursues both his six week goals, they seem incompatible as he needs to spend quality time on both to get both. But things change closer to September 13th when reaching one goal seem predicated on achieving the other.—Huggo
- London jazz pianist and aspiring composer Rupert Street (Dudley Moore) is looking to have a 30th birthday to remember, marriage on the big day, but lacks a bride, and finishing a musical production in the six weeks that remain. He even tries to set an appointment with the magistrate without being able to name a bride., He also has set himself the no less formidable additional target of writing a musical, all motivated by fear of reaching that grand age having achieved nothing in life. All this he communicates to his friend Oscar (Eddie Foy Jr.) before driving off to take care of a more immediate concern, his laundry and obsessing how he does not measure up to the great composers. Rupert arrives at his boarding house and is greeted by his landlady Enid Woolley (Patricia Routledge) collecting autographs for her niece and running a prenatal exercise class. Rupert learns a new boarder has moved in next to Street's room. Rupert reads a letter from his mother contained in his laundry package. The telephone in the hallway rings which is for his new neighbor Louise Hammond (Suzy Kendall) from a beau she dies not wish to marry. Luck comes Rupert's way in the form of the gorgeous but taken Louise (Suzy Kendall), a fellow boarder. Rupert imagines himself as all sort of classic romantic characters that might interest Louise. In frustration, Rupert screams out loud which gains Louise's attention. Louise invites Rupert in for coffee. Rupert learns Louise has an art education and taught school for a couple years. Their conversation is interrupted by a phone call from Rupert's agent Victor (Peter Bayliss). Victor insists Rupert arrive in four minutes to meet the director, Horst Cohen Jr. (Ted Dicks), as well as a choreographer and a naive backer of his yet unwritten musical. Rupert signs a contract committing him to the project, though he is obviously distracted by his encounter with Louise. When Rupert returns to his boarding house, Louise invites him to share some lunch. Rupert ends up kissing Louise on the floor after a musical fantasy of "The Real Stuff" but Louise is seeing her boyfriend Paul (Nicky Henson) that evening. At the club, the Jox Box, the club owner Jock (Duncan Macrae) is instructing his hostesses, the Clan girls, when Rupert arrives. Later, Rupert plays a jazz piano arrangement when he spies Louise and Paul in the audience. After the show, Rupert witnesses Paul insisting the Louise move in with him and marry him. Louise resists. Rupert steps in to defend Louise. The inevitable bust-up with competing suitor Paul leaves Rupert with right arm in plaster and unable to play. Oscar suggests leave town while he cannot play to write his musical. After a tiff with Louise about misinterpreted comments, Rupert sees the need of freedom from distraction. Rupert and Oscar depart for Dublin. While Rupert is away, Louise relocates outside the boarding house. Initially Rupert is uninspired, though highly fuel by coffee and annoyed with Oscar's endless stories. On a walk with Oscar, Rupert strays away and listens to an Irish story teller who spins the tale of the ill-fated love story of Michael and Moira who are torn apart by the lying schemes of Michael's brother Black Sean Dur and never find their reunion until they Re near death and rise to heaven together. Inspired, Rupert, doing his best imitation of Handel completing the Messiah in Dublin, completes his musical in three weeks. Industry and inspiration abound and Rupert returns to London triumphant having met his deadline for the show. Rupert and Oscar return to Rupert's boarding house and is enthusiastically greeted by Mrs. Woolley. Rupert imagines a romantic reunion with Louise but quickly learns she has moved away and the room is occupied by Barry. Rupert looks for a letter from Louise, but learns that Mr. Woolley (Harry Towb) tore them up in a drunken rage, jealous over his wife and her phonograph albums of Geraldo. Odds of achieving the other half of his plan look remote, though, as the the pieced together postcard reveals that Louise has left for Birmingham with the persistent Paul and Rupert must go in pursuit if he is to be married in the few days remaining till his birthday. Before Rupert travels by train, he sets the date of his marriage to Louise Hammond with the magistrate. Meanwhile, Rupert's agent Victor is pressured by the production's major investor on to lock up his creative work in a contract amendment or he will prevent the show from opening. Victor sends private eye Herbert Greenslade (John Bird) to Birmingham to hunt down the missing composer. Greenslade quickly finds Louise but Rupert remains elusive on the streets of Birmingham, though there are some narrow misses. Louise is also worried about Rupert. Rupert finally catches up with Rupert in a train car and leads him back to Louise who accepts Rupert's proposal of marriage. Reunited by Greenslade on Rupert's birthday, the couple rush back to London so the show opening can go on, via the marriage registry. After the wedding ceremony, Louise discovers that Rupert had applied for the marriage license three weeks prior, and realizes Rupert's desperation was not for her but a desire to be married before his 30th birthday. That evening Louise is missing when Rupert is interviewed prior to the opening of his show, The Golden Legend of Erin. Numerous intoxicated Irish men crowd into the balcony. When the curtain opens, Louise's seat is empty. Oscar has inserted himself into the show which plays as a farce, rather than a romance. As he officially turns 30 his wristwatch, Rupert realizes his marriage and his play are in shambles. However, the audience loves the show and cheers raucously with appreciation. Rupert finds Louise on the side of the stage and declares his love to her. All is forgiven and the couple leave the show early to enjoy their wedding night. The next morning, the papers declared Rupert's satirical show a critical success. Rupert also reads that a child born nine months hence when there is a full eclipse of the sum will be smiled on by the gods. Rupert leaps on Louise to begin the new project.
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By what name was 30 Is a Dangerous Age, Cynthia (1968) officially released in Canada in English?
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