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Glamour comes to wartime Folkestone as the town hosts its first world film premiere.
Documentary 1941 6 mins
The coastal town of Folkestone was on the front line during the war, with the fear of German invasion very real. So the arrival of stars from the film Kipps, attending the first 20th Century-Fox premiere to be held outside London, brought much-needed glamour and excitement to the beleaguered residents. Actors Phyllis Calvert, Michael Redgrave and Diana Wynyard address assembled dignitaries at a formal dinner before awarding prizes at a dance.
Folkestone was selected for the honour as author H.G. Wells lived in the area from the late 1890s to 1909, having moved there to recuperate from illness. His source novel Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul was published in 1905. Carol Reed's 1941 film was the second screen adaptation following the 1921 silent version, which was set in Folkestone.
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War 1939 9 mins
Summer 1939, and an ordinary family gets an alarming taste of war to come in this little-known Ealing Studios propaganda short.
Government sponsored film 1940 13 mins
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Advert 1943 2 mins
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