I DREAMED A DREAM (MRS HARRIS GOES TO PARIS)

© Focus Features & Universal Pictures

Are you looking for a charming film to slump in front of over the Christmas break?

Then you could do a lot worse than Anthony Fabian's 'Mrs Harris Goes to Paris' which has earned its star Lesley Manville a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy.

In a role previously played by Angela Lansbury, Manville is Ada Harris, a modest and kind hearted London cleaning lady and war widow who has held out hopes that her beloved husband might still be alive.

Set in 1957, her two closest friends are Ellen Thomas's big hearted but no nonsense fellow cleaner Vi Butterfield and Jason Isaacs' silver tongued Irish charmer and bookie's clerk, Archie.

© Focus Features & Universal Pictures

She also is very good to her clients - even if they are often thoughtless towards her.

Ada mothers Rose Williams' shambolic aspiring actress Pamela Penrose and puts up with Anna Chancellor's Lady Dant despite her steadfast avoidance of paying her for her work.

It is while working for Lady Dant that Ada spots a stunning Christian Dior dress in a wardrobe and hatches a dream that one day if she ever comes into money, she will go to Paris and buy one for herself.

Mrs Harris is devastated, though, when her husband's ring is returned to her, confirming his death in Poland during the war.

© Focus Features & Universal Pictures

However when she wins money on the football pools, she becomes convinced her husband is looking after her from the afterlife and trying to bring her good fortune.

Full of confidence, she goes to White City dog track and puts all her money on a rank outsider called Haute Couture, even though Archie has misgivings.

The dog starts the race impressively but then fades halfway through and all the money is blown.

But then suddenly her luck changes. 

Her fortunes take a turn for the better and she finds herself back in money.

© Focus Features & Universal Pictures

Heading to Paris to pursue her dream of buying a Dior dress, Ada encounters some snobbishness from some of the designer's staff, including Isabelle Huppert's Claudine Colbert and from Guilaine Londez's haughty customer Madame Avallon.

But she also charms Lambert Wilson's French aristocrat and widower, the Marquis de Chassagne, Lucas Bravo's Dior employee Andre Fauvel and Alba Baptiste's model Natasha.

Will her friendship with the Marquis de Chassagne blossom into a romance?

Will she bring Andre and Natasha together, given their shared interest in existentialism?

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Will she also realise her dream of buying a Dior dress in spite of the sniffiness of Claudine and Madame Avallon.

Based on the 1958 novel by the American writer Paul Gallico, it's easy to see how Fabian's movie could turn out quite twee.

However 'Mrs Harris Goes To Paris' gets by on sheer charm, thanks to some inspired casting.

Manville, who seems incapable of turning in a bad performance, is a sheer joy as Ada Harris.

© Focus Features & Universal Pictures

As the emotional core of the film, she guides the audience through the many ups and downs of her character and- never relinquishes her hold on our sympathy for the honest London charlady.

She is complemented by equally charming performances from Thomas, Isaacs, Wilson, Baptista, Bravo and Williams.

Huppert, Londez and Chancellor also relish and excel at playing various shades of snobbishness.

Adapted for the screen by Fabian, Carroll Cartwright, Keith Thompson and Olivia Hetreed, there is nothing particularly challenging about his film.

© Focus Features & Universal Pictures

'Mrs Harris Goes To Paris' is pretty to look at and an amusing diversion, thanks to Luciana Arrighi's production design, Felix Wiedemann's cinematography and, of course, Jenny Beaven's stunning costumes.

But that's sometimes all you require.

Sometimes you just need a film that gives you a warm glow.

That's exactly what Fabian's film delivers and he can thank his superb cast for delivering just that.

('Mrs Harris Goes To Paris' was released in UK and Irish cinemas on September 30, 2022)