This film is part of Free
A Journal of the Outdoors No. 11
Wildfowl and wallabies in the wild, exotic animals in the office
Overview
Ever wondered how to adopt a duck? That's just one of the wildlife topics covered in this varied short. Cricket commentator John Arlott narrates an item exploring a national project to record wildfowl numbers, followed by a look at wallabies and their young, voiced by actress Barbara Mullen. The final story's the quirky keeper, with Robert Beatty doing vocal honours: a steeplejack's office is home to a parrot, cockatoo, toucan, alligator and a marmoset who snacks on live fish.
Countryman Films was an ambitious venture formed by the great producer Leon Clore and documentary veterans John Taylor and Graham Tharpe. Their films, released with the slightly confusing double branding of both World of Life and Journal of the Outdoors, were intended as modern equivalents of the much-missed 1930s and 40s series Secrets of Nature and Secrets of Life. Their productions were solid, well-crafted stuff - note the fine photography that legendary Irish cameraman Patrick Carey contributes to this edition - but after a few years fell victim to the vagaries of film distribution. The post-war cinema trade increasingly lost its enthusiasm for padding screenings with supporting shorts - and besides, there was no way Countryman's worthy efforts could compete with Disney's much glossier nature films.
Related
Wisdom of the Wild Wisdom of the Wild
Documentary 1940 12 mins
Fun mixture of natural history and wartime public information.
Dog Years Dog Years
Comedy 2004 4 mins
Sweet and funny short about a potty-mouthed dog who loves his owner
Beetle Racing Beetle Racing
News 1959 3 mins
Six legged competitors take to the starting blocks as a Midlands pub brings the sport of beetle racing to the world.
Alligator on Lizard Alligator on Lizard
Current affairs 1971 5 mins Location: St Keverne
Daisy the pet alligator living on the Lizard in Cornwall
Anoop and the Elephant Anoop and the Elephant
Children's 1972 52 mins Director: David Eady
Fun-packed comedy for kids, in which a boy befriends a baby elephant – then teams up with his friends to stop it being sold
Open Your Eyes Open Your Eyes
Amateur film 1967 14 mins Location: Thompson Common
Should you look hard enough, you’ll be amazed at the antics that creatures get up to, says Dorothy Maxey, amateur filmmaker and naturalist.
China O'Brien: The Reunion China O'Brien: The Reunion
Documentary 2024 60 mins
Cynthia Rothrock, Richard Norton and Keith Cooke reunite three decades on from the groundbreaking martial arts classic.
Women in Action Panel Discussion Women in Action Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 28 mins
Action Xtreme - the UK's leading action film studio - hosts this panel discussion with four leading women in action cinema - Soo Cole, Jo Rolison, Jadey Duffield and Ioanna Karavela.
Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 24 mins
Daniel Kokotajlo talks to Nia Childs about Starve Acre, his folk horror about a couple digging deep into grief in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales.
Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 30 mins
Sky Peals director Moin Hussain and lead actor Faraz Ayub talk to Tomisin Adepeju about their magic realist drama.
Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell
Documentary 2024 42 mins
Documentary exploring the BFI National Archive’s role in rediscovering and remastering the early films of Michael Powell.
Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels
Short documentary 2024 12 mins
Bryony Dixon, curator of silent film at the BFI national archive, explores the origins of a series of comic travelogues, and Michael Powell's involvement in making them.