Boys Playing in Snow

Wintry fun as a gang of Victorian boys launch a boisterous snowball assault

The simple joy of children at play was a popular subject for early filmmakers - and for Victorian audiences. The Yorkshire-based Bamforth Company released a number of scenes of boys playing during 1900 - this entertaining bit of wintry whimsy is a companion to Boys Sliding, which may have been shot at the same time.

Unlike that film, though, Boys Playing in Snow has a narrative element, in the form of an unfortunate passing gentlemen, who slides into shot and quickly finds himself the target of a ruthlessly co-ordinated snowball assault. It's also shot from a much closer camera position, which may weaken the formal beauty of the images, but gives us a better view of the boys' high spirits - and their victim's humiliation.