This film is part of Free

Title of error

See Help

Beating the Bounds at St Albans

An ancient parish custom is revived by twentieth century merrymakers in the historic Hertfordshire market-town.

Non-Fiction 1913 3 mins Silent

Overview

Armed with wands of willow, the people of St Albans take to the fields for the annual ceremonial marking or 'beating' of the parish boundaries. Among the high-spirited chaos, this newsreel item shows a man and a woman being 'bumped' on a boundary-stone, to the delight of onlookers. Moving back to town, local dignitaries are jostled by brass bands and an ecstatic crowd in the grid-locked centre.

One of the longest-running events in the English calendar, 'beating the bounds' traditionally took place in various locations on Rogation Sunday, the fifth Sunday after Easter. The St Albans ceremony (which claims to date back to the 13th century) is one of a few surviving celebrations of its kind. The intertitle tells us that this occasion in 1913 marked a revival of the custom after a 34-year lapse, which helps explain the particularly large crowd. Today the event continues to serve as a focus for community bonding and general merrymaking.

Original title

Beating the Bounds at St Albans Topical Budget 119-2

Genres

Non-Fiction

Country

United Kingdom

Location

St Albans

Language

English

Subjects

Beating the bounds

Watch for free

Our Hertfordshire Heritage Our Hertfordshire Heritage

Travelogue 1955 16 mins Silent Location: Vervlamivm (Roman Town)

The high number of intertitles suggest that the credited ‘Sound Engineer’ provided a now lost music accompaniment to the pictures.

Watch for free

Elizabethan Village - Hertfordshire Elizabethan Village - Hertfordshire

Amateur film 1957 19 mins Silent Location: Wheathampstead

Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother opens Wheathampstead School, 1967. A young Queen Elizabeth at St Albans Cathedral, Maundy Thursday, 1957.

Watch for free

In Old St Albans In Old St Albans

Travelogue 1920 9 mins Silent Location: St Albans

Popular with Romans, monks, and the Hertfordshire Albanians of 1920 and today, the historic city of St Albans was made to be put on film.

Watch for free

New Perspectives: La Haine New Perspectives: La Haine

Short documentary 2025 4 mins

Charlie Hammersley, a student from Northumbria University, explains how Mathieu Kassovitz's 1995 film holds up a mirror to society.

Watch for free

Dreamers Q&A Dreamers Q&A

Inside Film 2025 30 mins

The film-makers behind a haunting tale of love and community within a UK immigration detention centre visited the BFI Southbank to discuss their film.