National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales preserves and celebrates the sound and moving image heritage of Wales, making it accessible to a wide range of users for enjoyment and learning. Its film collection reflects every aspect of the nation’s social, cultural and working life across the 20th century, giving a fascinating insight into Welsh filmmaking, both amateur and professional.
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Going To Press - Montgomeryshire Express and Radnor Times
Combine paper and ink, science and skill, craft and understanding and you produce, according to Geoff Charles, the film-maker, “one of to-day's miracles” - a weekly newspaper.
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Overview
Pen and ink, science and skill, craft and understanding are the six precious ingredients that combine to produce “one of today’s miracles”, the weekly newspaper. This according to Geoff Charles who was responsible for the photographic section of Woodalls Newspapers and who filmed the production of this paper, each copy printed off a roll 5 ј miles long.
Geoff Charles was born in Brymbo in 1909. He obtained a Diploma (first class) in Journalism from the University of London in 1928 and went on to work on newpapers in south Wales, Surrey and Wrexham. It was in Wrexham that he bought his first camera, where he was appointed manager of Woodalls Newspapers photographic section and from where he went on to photograph life in Wales across a number of decades, culminating in a donation of 120,000 negatives to The National Library of Wales. He also worked for Y Cymro newspaper and produced a number of films in collaboration with its editor, John Roberts Williams (e.g. Yr Etifeddiaeth/The Heritage).
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