Yes, until the early 1980s British nationality could be acquired by descent through the male line, but not through the female line. Plus, it had to be legitimate descent. There were various exceptions and qualifications and special cases - British nationality law is nothing if not insanely complicated - but that was the basic rule.
However, the right of abode in the UK was separate from citizenship. Simply being a “Citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies”, as the status was known at the time, did not entitle you to settle in the UK. For that, you needed some further connection with the UK. There were a variety of different connections that would do - having been born there, having been resident there for five years or more, etc. Some of these depended on inheritance and those conditions were gender-neutral. Anyone born in the Falkland Islands was a Citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, and if either of their parents was a CUKC born or naturalised in the UK, they would have a right of abode in the UK.