At Wessex Film and Sound Archive you can see and hear history, from late Victorian times to the present day, through moving images and sound recordings. The Archive contains over 36,000 film and sound recordings relating to Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, including film and tapes of local TV and radio.
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Red Funnel Ferries
Thrill to the speed onboard a Red Funnel hydrofoil as it scoots across the Solent in this nostalgic advert from 1969
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Overview
This enjoyably nostalgic advert from 1969 starts with a shot of Red Funnel's newest hydrofoil, the Shearwater, speeding across the Solent. We cut to the interior cabin where the passengers, sitting comfortably, enjoy the view. Another shot shows the Shearwater overtaking a conventional ferry while the announcer extolls the fast journey time between Cowes and Southampton. We end with titles over a final shot of the Shearwater.
Red Funnel's Italian-designed hydrofoil, Shearwater, was the first such craft to enter commercial service in the United Kingdom. Introduced in 1969, the Shearwater, and her sister ship, Shearwater I, could each carry 54 passengers on the company's Cowes to Southampton service. The hydrofoils remained in service until 1973 when they were replaced with larger craft that could carry 67 passengers.
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