This film is part of Free
Grand Hotel
Comedy stars Laurel and Hardy receive a rapturous welcome at Tynemouth, captured by an enthusiastic amateur filmmaker.
Overview
Shot by an enthusiastic amateur, Grand Hotel provides a valuable glimpse of the rapturous welcome received by legendary comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy when they visited Tynemouth in 1932. With local lad Stan unaware of how popular they had become in Britain, his low key homecoming became a full-scale promotional tour; the duo were mobbed by hordes of adoring fans wherever they went.
Ulverston-born Laurel went to school in Tynemouth. Though the film bulges with verbose intertitles, no mention is made of the fact that Stan's father's house - seen towards the end - was not in Tynemouth, but in Ealing, West London.
Related
Lifeboat Lifeboat
Promotional 1966 18 mins Location: Bamburgh Castle
A Perkins Engines sponsored film on the development of British lifeboats and the history of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
Tynemouth Carnival August 1930 Tynemouth Carnival August 1930
Non-Fiction 1930 10 mins Silent Location: Tynemouth
A windfall of faces and fancy dress at Tynemouth Carnival for the cameras of cinema showman Dixon Scott.
Beauty Parade Beauty Parade
Amateur film 1960 2 mins Silent Location: Tynemouth
Focused on beauty in swimwear at the Tynemouth outdoor pool in the early 1960s.
ACA Goes Down River for Special Launching of Tynemouth Lifeboat ACA Goes Down River for Special Launching of Tynemouth Lifeboat
Amateur film 1947 9 mins Silent Location: Newcastle upon Tyne
Downriver with a movie camera for a special launch of the Tynemouth lifeboat.
Tynemouth and Bamburgh Tynemouth and Bamburgh
Home movie 1959 8 mins Silent Location: Newcastle upon Tyne
A farewell at Newcastle Quayside launches a salty travelogue of sorts.
County of Northumberland County of Northumberland
Amateur film 1963 19 mins Silent Location: Holy Island
The toe-dipping delights and tranquillity of the Northumbrian Riviera and beyond.
Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.
Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.
Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.
Police Story: Panel Discussion Police Story: Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 24 mins
Panel discussion on Jackie Chan's 1985 action classic Police Story, with Chase Armitage, Sam Mak and Jadey Duffield.
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.