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Edwardian Enigmas
Who, what, where? Calling amateur detectives - can you help us solve these mysteries?
Over the last few years we've learned a lot about the filmmaking partnership of Mitchell and Kenyon. Research by the University of Sheffield and the BFI has revealed an enormous amount of background detail about the films, the events they depict and the way in which they were commissioned and shown. But a few of the 826 rolls of films found in the basement of their former premises in Blackburn have so far stubbornly refused to offer up their secrets. So now's your chance to play amateur detective. Do you recognise this town, that street, those factory gates, that football team... even a face in the crowd? Can you help throw some light on these shadowy mysteries? Even if you can't, you can still enjoy these heady slices of Edwardian (or Victorian) life. Digitisation of this collection was funded by The National Lottery.
Lizars, EdinburghLizars, Edinburgh
Drama19042 minsSilent Location: Edinburgh
Mitchell and Kenyon capture comedian Tom E. Murray at Lizars Theatre in Edinburgh on 12 December 1904.
Unidentified Trams and Walking Race (c.1902)Unidentified Trams and Walking Race (c.1902)
Non-Fiction19021 minsSilent
Eager crowds watch the trams go by, while a boisterous children's walking race raises smiles all round.
Unidentified Chinese Men (c.1900)Unidentified Chinese Men (c.1900)
Non-Fiction19002 minsSilent
How did these Chinese gentlemen end up in a Blackburn basement?
Parade of Schoolchildren (c.1902)Parade of Schoolchildren (c.1902)
Non-Fiction19032 minsSilent
Can you identify this street corner, or perhaps a young face in the parade?
Mitchell and Kenyon Fiction OffcutsMitchell and Kenyon Fiction Offcuts
Drama19020 minsSilent
Two tantalising fragments of Mitchell and Kenyon's fiction films - but what do they tell us?
Scene Outside a Factory (c.1902)Scene Outside a Factory (c.1902)
Non-Fiction19022 minsSilent
Men mill around the bustling yard of a large workplace, perhaps a brewery?
Textile Workers Leaving a Factory (c.1901)Textile Workers Leaving a Factory (c.1901)
Non-Fiction19013 minsSilent
An assortment of Edwardian workers, including many mischievous children who are far from camera-shy.
Ship Departing from Port (c.1901)Ship Departing from Port (c.1901)
Non-Fiction19011 minsSilent
A large liner draws away from the quay, but where is she headed?
Employees Leaving a Factory (c.1901)Employees Leaving a Factory (c.1901)
Non-Fiction19012 minsSilent
Could the newspaper boy tell us where this factory was?
Factory Exit in Wigan (1901)Factory Exit in Wigan (1901)
Non-Fiction19013 minsSilent Location: Wigan
The largely female workforce of an Edwardian Lancashire factory parades past the camera.
Street Scenes in North of England (c.1902)Street Scenes in North of England (c.1902)
Non-Fiction19022 minsSilent
A mysterious but vivid snapshot of Edwardian life.
Exit of Clerical and Factory Workers (c.1901)Exit of Clerical and Factory Workers (c.1901)
Non-Fiction19002 minsSilent
It's home time for men and women at an imposing but unidentified workplace - or two?
Workers at Ross & Hardy Paper Works (1901)Workers at Ross & Hardy Paper Works (1901)
Non-Fiction19012 minsSilent
Where was this Edwardian paper works?
Unidentified Factory Gate Exit in Lancashire (c.1900)Unidentified Factory Gate Exit in Lancashire (c.1900)
Non-Fiction19001 minsSilent Location: Lancashire
A diverse workforce make their way from the factory, perhaps a Lancashire cotton mill?
Workforce Leaving a Factory in the North of England (c.1900)Workforce Leaving a Factory in the North of England (c.1900)
Non-Fiction19002 minsSilent
Victorian factory workers head for home, dodging puddles along the way.
Unidentified Factory Gate (c.1900)Unidentified Factory Gate (c.1900)
Non-Fiction19002 minsSilent
Mystery workers hurry through cobbled streets
Workers Leaving a Factory (1900)Workers Leaving a Factory (1900)
Non-Fiction19002 minsSilent
An unidentified factory is the setting for some lively Victorian characters.