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This fascinating 60s tour catches London's South Bank in the middle of a cultural metamorphosis.
Documentary 1964 13 mins
Thirteen years after the Festival of Britain, it's all change once again on London's South Bank. With the sci-fi saucer that was the Dome of Discovery long gone, this gentle boat tour along the Thames takes in County Hall, Royal Dutch Shell's imposing new HQ, and the building site next to the Royal Festival Hall that would blossom into the Hayward Gallery, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Purcell Rooms.
The film's final minutes offer a compelling glimpse inside the National Film Theatre, as filmgoers emerge from the latest Jean-Luc Godard offering and Jeanne Moreau, one of the brightest stars of the 'nouvelle vague', sparkles down from the poster board: a touch of continuity in an area that was evolving into London's most vibrant cultural quarter. Intriguingly, the commentary suggests the new National Theatre was to be built in front of the Shell building, rather than on the other side of Waterloo Bridge, where it eventually opened in 1976.
Travelogue 2006 65 mins Location: Land's End
Startling colour photography of 1920s Britain imbues Claude Friese-Greene’s 1920s road trip around Britain.
Documentary 1959 49 mins Location: Kennington
Karel Reisz’s honest depiction of South London teens aimed to challenge the media perception of ‘Teddy Boys’.
Government sponsored film 1956 12 mins Location: Soho
Traffic chaos and parking pandemonium in London is nothing new - as we see from this colourful 1950s research film shot around the capital.
Public Information Filler 1928 20 mins Silent Location: Bermondsey
The original foodie city: from bustling Bermondsey Wharves through Smithfield and Billingsgate to London's street markets and general stores.
1931 5 mins Silent Location: Bermondsey
Scenes of thronging street life and market trading along Tower Bridge Road, Bermondsey Street and Southwark Park Road.
Trick film 1930 4 mins Silent Location: Southwark Br
Do our eyes deceive us? Trick shots galore in this magical tour of London.
Amateur film 1977 3 mins Silent Location: Waterloo Sta
Acrobats, actors, musicians, human statues: nothing is off-the-table in South Bank for this extravagant exhibition of excellent talents.
Promotional 1930 14 mins Silent Location: Waterloo Sta
Ride the Bournemouth Belle to this famous southern seaside resort – in a film featuring golfers, skaters and the Municipal Symphony Orchestra
Non-Fiction 1922 1 mins Silent Location: Waterloo Sta
Her Majesty Queen Mary officially opens the much rebuilt Waterloo station for the London and South Western Railway, 21 March 1922.
Documentary 1961 33 mins Location: Waterloo Sta
The daily rhythms and dramas of Waterloo station are captured in John Schlesinger’s influential early film.
Musical 1986 16 mins Location: Waterloo Sta
Sally Potter's lively dance film about spies and government intrigue.
Comedy 1896 1 mins Silent
A deft music hall act adapted for film, featuring the only known appearance of pioneer filmmaker Robert Paul
Advert 1985 2 mins
Take a fighter jet, a Top Gun pilot with sunglasses and a brand new SAAB 900 and you have a sure-fire vehicle to launch a Hollywood career.
Promotional 2019 10 mins
A wandering warrior dreams of a new form of expression, in this promo for UNKLE’s album The Road: Part II / Lost Highway Pt. II directed by Warren Du Preez and Nick Thornton Jones.
1935 16 mins
A rare glimpse of 1930s London in colour: the Thames has never looked lovelier.
1965 1 mins Location: York
A world away from zany humour, Richard Lester shows he can also capture the easy opulence of the upper class nibbling After Eight mints.
Advert 1946 1 mins Silent
Life is looking up! The war is over and the “Corona” Man can visit his “Corona” families once more, door-to-door.
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