Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Bedknobs and Broomsticks is a 1971 American musical fantasy film directed by Robert Stevenson and songs written by the Sherman Brothers. It was produced by Bill Walsh for Walt Disney Productions. It is based upon the books The Magic Bedknob; or, How to Become a Witch in Ten Easy Lessons (1943) and Bonfires and Broomsticks (1947) by English children's author Mary Norton. The film, which combines live action and animation, stars Angela Lansbury, David Tomlinson, Ian Weighill, Cindy O'Callaghan, and Roy Snart.
Plot
In August 1940, during the Blitz, three orphaned children named Charlie, Carrie, and Paul Rawlins are evacuated from London to Peppering Eye near the Dorset coast where they are placed in the reluctant care of Miss Eglantine Price, who agrees to the arrangement temporarily. The children attempt to run back to London, but after observing Miss Price attempting to fly on a broomstick, they change their minds. Miss Price reveals she is learning witchcraft through a correspondence school with hopes of using her spells in the British war effort against the Nazis, and offers the children a transportation spell in exchange for their silence. She casts the spell on a bedknob, and adds only Paul can work the spell, as he is the one who handed the bedknob to her. Later, Miss Price receives a letter from her school announcing its closure, thus preventing her from learning the final spell. She convinces Paul to use the enchanted bed to return the group to London, and locate Professor Emelius Browne.