The Yorkshire Film Archive collects, preserves, and shows film made in, or about Yorkshire. Our collections are non-fiction, dating from the 1890s to the present day, and providing a rich and visually compelling record of all aspects of lives, cultures, landscape, industries, major events and everyday activities, many of which are available to watch, free of charge, on our website.
This film is part of Free
Come Wind, Come Weather
After a hard day rescuing sheep buried in the snow or drowning in floods, what better way to dry out or de-frost than with a nice hot cup of cocoa.
From the collection of:
Overview
This is one of several cinema ads for Rowntree’s cocoa produced in 1955, all on the theme of returning from the cold or from dangerous occupations to be soothed by a hot cup of cocoa. In this one we have an assortment of hazards: waves crashing against a coastline in a storm, a lifeboat at sea, firemen fighting a fire, and sheep being rescued from heavy snow and flooding. And at the end a homely wife is waiting, ready with that hot cup.
This is one of a large collection of films made by Rowntree’s of York (now Nestlé), most of which are adverts for their confectionary products. Before the emergence of television advertising in 1955, the cinema remained an important, though fading, outlet for adverts. Wallace Productions specialised in making promotional and advertising films from the 1930s through to the 1970s. The chocolate side of Rowntree’s started out with a cocoa based drink in 1864, and the drink cocoa is one of the few products that has retained the name Rowntree's, rather than being changed to Nestlé. The word “cocoa” is, of course, the generic name for the bean, and the Cocoa Works was the name of the Rowntree’s factory in York.
Related
What We Want Is Watney's What We Want Is Watney's
Advert 1959 1 mins
A young Michael Caine bursts on to the scene as a cheeky soldier in this delightful advert for Watney's beer.
Guinness - Plinths Guinness - Plinths
Advert 1976 1 mins
Pete and Dud prove to be stout football fans in this Guinness commercial recalling a great sporting moment - however fleeting.
PG Tips: Hairdressers PG Tips: Hairdressers
Advert 1978 1 mins
An example of the long-running Brooke Bond PG Tips advertising campaign, with talking chimpanzees dressed as humans.
Guinness - Raf Flying Toucans Guinness - Raf Flying Toucans
Advert 1955 1 mins
An RAF squadron are alerted to an attack. Flying toucans raid the officers mess and fly off with glasses of Guinness.
Fun on the Farm Fun on the Farm
Advert 1935 5 mins Silent
What seems a charming stop-motion rhapsody for Bourn-vita chocolate reveals some unpleasant racial insensitivity.
The Spirit of His Forefathers The Spirit of His Forefathers
Advert 1900 1 mins Silent
One of the earliest surviving British adverts
This Is York This Is York
Travelogue 1953 21 mins Location: York
The Stationmaster at York guides us through a typical day, from dawn to dusk.
Alarm Call Alarm Call
Advert 1955 2 mins Location: York
A drink for all occasions, but especially to relieve the stress of those brave souls battling fires, floods and well-behaved children.
Kit Kat: Meccano Kit Kat: Meccano
1969 0 mins Location: York
Any boy struggling to construct Meccano will deserve a chocolate break, though perhaps this won’t be as satisfying as completing the Meccano.
Rowntrees Aero: Train Rowntrees Aero: Train
Advert 1980 1 mins Location: York
The bar with unique bubbly texture, using a secret bubbly formula, giving rise to the bubbly banter of bubbly flirting.
Dairy Box: Skiffle Cellar Dairy Box: Skiffle Cellar
Advert 1958 1 mins Location: York
Out goes the romantic gesture and in comes the hip as Una Stubbs and her fellow cats break open the chocolates in a groovy scene in a groovy club.
Black Magic: Taxi Black Magic: Taxi
1964 1 mins Location: York
Chocolates and wealth, chocolates and taste, chocolates and elegance, chocolates and romance: the lifestyle of chocolates.
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.