Safety at Sea

The March of Time’s first British edition features an explosive selection of stories which caused controversy on both sides of the Atlantic and set the tone for the series as a whole.

The March of Time’s first British edition features an explosive selection of stories which caused controversy on both sides of the Atlantic and set the tone for the series as a whole. In 29 breathless minutes it covers disasters at sea, the coming war in Ethiopia, shows an American driver teaching the French a lesson, and finds words of praise for the efficient modernisation of Stalin’s Russia. Climaxing with film of a night rally by a proto-Fascist French group that was in fact orchestrated by the story’s director, this introductory March of Time issue captures the blend of energy, originality and artifice that came to typify the whole series.