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1. ‘Nanny McPhee’ Case Study
Summary
The plot of the first Nanny McPhee film involves a single father and his seven children living
at their country home during the late 1800’s after the death of their mother a few years
prior. Thus far the siblings have driven away every nanny they have ever had and their busy
father is desperate to find one who can handle them. To this end he discovers Nanny
McPhee. Upon her arrival the children begin their attempts to be rid of her immediately.
Unfortunately for them their elaborate schemes consistently fail every time and they are
sometimes punished via the use of McPhee’s magic. Slowly the children begin to come
around to the idea that they cannot dispose of this nanny as they had her predecessors and
as such develop a grudging acceptance of her presence; after a time they even begin to
appreciate and like her. Every time one of the children behaves well and changes their
unruly behaviour a physical disfigurement disappears from her face such as a wart or a
crooked tooth.
As this is occurring the father’s aunty is pressuring him into marriage with an unlikeable
local woman who dislikes the children subtly, especially once they begin their attempts to
scare her off. Furthermore the aunt attempts to take away one of the children for tutoring,
however unbeknownst to her she is not taking one of the children but is instead taking the
maid who volunteered to take the youngest daughters place.
Towards the films finale the father has crumbled to his aunt’s demands and his marriage to
the unpleasant woman is in progress. As the ceremony progresses however the children
pretend to be under attack from a swarm of bees in order to disrupt the proceedings and
prevent the marriage before beginning a food fight. The unpleasant woman flees and the
father ends up marrying the maid whom he had fallen in love with throughout the story.
Following this Nanny McPhee reveals that she (now fully clear of any blemishes or
disfigurements) has to leave as the children no longer need her. Under great protest, the
children bid her farewell and return home with their father and new stepmother.
Actors
 Emma Thompson as Nanny McPhee
 Colin Firth as Cedric Brown, the widower undertaker patriarch of the Brown family
 Thomas Brodie Sangster as Simon David Brown, the eldest of the Brown children; 13
years old
 Kelly Macdonald as Evangeline, the Browns' patient scullery maid
 Angela Lansbury as Great Aunt Adelaide Stitch, the strict aunt of Cedric's late wife
 Eliza Bennett as Tora Eilabella Brown, the most sensible of the Brown children; 11
years old

2.  Jennifer Rae Daykin as Liliana Justine Brown, the most imaginative of the Brown
children; 9 years old
 Raphaël Coleman as Eric Adam Brown, the most intelligent of the Brown children; 10
years old
 Samuel Honywood as Sebastian Frank Brown, twin brother of Christianna Brown; 5
years old
 Holly Gibbs as Christianna Hannah Brown, twin sister of Sebastian Brown; 5 years old
 Hebe and Zinnia Barnes play Agatha Rose Brown, the youngest of the Brown
children; she is 2 years old
 Celia Imrie as Mrs. Selma Quickly, a vile woman and Cedric's initial fiancée
 Imelda Staunton as Mrs. Blatherwick, the Browns' loud chef
 Derek Jacobi as Mr. Wheen, one of Cedric's co-workers
 Patrick Barlow as Mr. Jowls, one of Cedric's co-workers
 Adam Godley as the Vicar, the priest who almost marries Cedric and Selma
Critical Reception
On the critic site Rotten Tomatoes the film achieved a relatively high average rating of 73%
out of a total of 130 reviews.
Release
It had its theatrical release in the United Kingdom on the 28th of October 2005 and later
released to US cinemas on the 27th of January 2006. This was carried out by Universal
Studios whilst its DVD release was coordinated by Universal Studios Home Entertainment.
Box Office
On its opening night in the US it made $14,503,650 in 1,995 theatres across the country.
Overall it made $122,489,822 worldwide. $47,144,110 of that figure was made in the US
and the remaining $75,345,712 was generated from theatres across the rest of the world.