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Spotlight on Key Workers

A salute to the vital workers who keep our essential services running in bad times - and all the time.

This emergency has put the spotlight on the 'key workers', risking their health and their lives for the benefit of others. As the films in this collection demonstrate, it's not just in times of crisis that such workers are heroes.

It's a founding principle of Britain's documentary tradition to place the worker front and centre. From the Victorian filmmakers' fascination with firefighters, to the 1930s generation's championing of postal workers and the postwar film units' documenting of transport workers and the doctors and nurses of the fledgling NHS, via teachers, food and agricultural workers and more - we depended on them then, just as we do today.

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These Are the Hands These Are the Hands

Charity appeal 2020 2 mins

Beautiful NHS fundraiser, setting Michael Rosen’s poem to powerful archive images.

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Task of the Teacher Task of the Teacher

School programme and Educational film 1973 43 mins Location: Northcourt

London’s school kids get to grips with teaching methods, technology and cows in this film from the 1970s explaining educational theories at different London schools.

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District Nurse District Nurse

Government sponsored film 1952 27 mins Location: Wadhurst

Never a dull moment for a rural district nurse in the early days of the NHS.

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Pakistani Bus Driver Pakistani Bus Driver

News 1974 2 mins Location: Birmingham

Bus timetables are sacrosanct to some but to others there are more important things in life - and faith is one of them.

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Dustman Dustman

Documentary 1928 3 mins Silent Location: Sheffield

Refuse collection you cannot refuse with some state-of-the-art bin business in 1920s Sheffield

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Mobile Shop Mobile Shop

News 1975 4 mins Location: Ullesthorpe

It's an Aladdin's Cave of household goods: Donald Sansome's travelling store is a lifeline for the people of rural Leicestershire

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The Daily Round: The Story of Milk Production and Distribution The Daily Round: The Story of Milk Production and Distribution

Promotional 1954 22 mins Location: East Sussex

Indulge your nostalgia for the old-fashioned milk bottle with this Express Dairy promotional film from the 1950s.

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Tracing the Spread of Infection Tracing the Spread of Infection

Documentary 1949 23 mins

Doctors undertake forensic-style detective work to identify the origins of outbreaks, in the fascinating film from the early days of the NHS.

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Salute to Farmers Salute to Farmers

Documentary 1941 14 mins

With feeding the nation a wartime priority, agricultural workers are heralded as soldiers of the plough.

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Night Mail Night Mail

Documentary 1936 24 mins Location: Euston Sta

The flagship of the GPO Film Unit's output and a cornerstone of British documentary, featuring music by Benjamin Britten and the verse of W.H. Auden.

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Foel Grocery Van, Cwm Twrch Shearing and Tipperary Creamery Foel Grocery Van, Cwm Twrch Shearing and Tipperary Creamery

School programme and Educational film 1957 21 mins Silent Location: Foel

The Foel grocer delivers bread in a van; wool is gathered in Cwm Twrch; farmers in Co. Kerry take churns on carts to a creamery for distribution.

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Double Thread Double Thread

Documentary 1943 33 mins Location: Guildford

The Secret Life of 4 Year Olds (1940s-style) at a nursery in Guildford.

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Modern Day Nightingales Modern Day Nightingales

School programme and Educational film 1978 5 mins

Gripping glimpses of modern nursing - on the frontline at Guy’s Hospital.

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Daily Round Daily Round

Promotional 1937 18 mins Silent

A postman's job is never done! The people of Musbury, Devon, are among the players in this fantasy vision of a postal future

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His Fighting Chance His Fighting Chance

Government sponsored film 1949 10 mins

Eleanor Roosevelt and Michael Redgrave narrate this optimistic post-war film on the rehabilitation of disabled people with polio.

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Metropolitan Police Ambulance Team Metropolitan Police Ambulance Team

1917 18 mins Silent

Metropolitan Police officers demonstrate their paramedic skills in this early training film

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Cast Us Not Out Cast Us Not Out

Documentary 1969 22 mins

Documentary insight into the work of the Jewish Welfare Board, helping some of the most vulnerable people in the community

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L.C.C. Nursery School L.C.C. Nursery School

Amateur film 1938 7 mins Silent Location: Stepney

Work hard, play hard, rest hard - this London County Council nursery in the East End strikes the right balance.

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Village Shop Village Shop

Magazine and Review show 1982 6 mins Location: Hamstall Ridware

The fight to save the village shop at Hamstall Ridware heightens as shoppers fall for the allure of the new fangled supermarket.

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Understanding Aggression Understanding Aggression

Documentary 1960 23 mins

Eye-opening drama-doc, originally used in psychiatric nursing training.

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Housemother Housemother

Public Information Filler 1958 16 mins Location: London

Baths, bumps, fights and football all feature in this promotional film looking at social care for children under the London County Council.

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Science in a Rural Primary School Science in a Rural Primary School

School programme and Educational film 1961 20 mins Location: Riding Mill

A sweet educational film from the era of ink wells, pen nibs and butterfly nets.

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Health at the Centre Health at the Centre

Documentary 1974 8 mins Location: Walton-on-Thames

The latest developments in healthcare on show at Walton-on-Thames community health centre

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Green Line Green Line

Amateur film 1980 6 mins Location: Crawley

Crawley is the venue for a great gathering of buses and coaches to celebrate a half-century of Green Line services in this memorable film from Beryl Armstrong

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Dial A Prayer Dial A Prayer

News 1964 1 mins Silent Location: Belfast

Join the dial-a craze and receive spiritual comfort from the comfort of your own home.

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One of the Staff One of the Staff

Documentary 1977 9 mins Location: Congleton

Delivering bread is all in a day's work for this modern day work-horse.

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Working Together Working Together

Industry sponsored film 1959 16 mins

Everything the fifties customer could possibly want can be supplied by the Co-op - as this nostalgic promotional film will show

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Fire! Fire!

Drama 1901 5 mins Silent

A dramatic rescue from a burning building by heroic firemen is one of our most important films

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Spring Comes to England Spring Comes to England

Government sponsored film 1934 16 mins Location: Isles of Scilly

Farming techniques and modern methods bring new crops to market.

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Blind Farmer Blind Farmer

News 1978 5 mins Location: Shebdon

Farming: hard work in all weathers - and not a job you'd associate with someone with a severe visual impairment.

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Women Farm Workers Women Farm Workers

1918 1 mins Silent

These Land Girls are firm friends - and just as good at farm work as the men they replaced during WWI

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Willesden Borough Council Refuse Collection Willesden Borough Council Refuse Collection

Amateur film 1947 2 mins Silent Location: Willesden

Short film showing mounds of rubbish arriving in Willesden’s municipal tip, which workers attempt to filter and disperse.

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Incinerate - With Coal Incinerate - With Coal

Documentary 1973 26 mins Location: Nottingham

The styles, streets and music of 1970s Nottingham are engagingly evoked in this industrial process film.

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Fully Fitted Freight Fully Fitted Freight

Industry sponsored film 1957 20 mins

Illustrating the efficiency of express freight trains, and how they link manufacturers with their customers at the other end of Britain.

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Metropolitan Fire Brigade Turn Out Metropolitan Fire Brigade Turn Out

Non-Fiction 1899 1 mins Silent Location: Westminster

"London's Burning, London's Burning"... A dynamic early film of horse-drawn fire engines 'turning out' at Southwark Bridge Road.

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National Fire Service National Fire Service

Charity appeal 1944 11 mins

Focusing on the wartime threat to north-west England, this charity appeal salutes the "angels with grimy faces"

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Education Week 1925 Education Week 1925

Documentary 1925 35 mins Silent Location: Newcastle upon Tyne

Young scholars get busy for Newcastle-on-Tyne's 'Education Week' in this charming tour of Tyneside classrooms.

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Train Time Train Time

Documentary 1952 30 mins

Examining a day in the life of what was then the busiest railway system in the world – British Railways.

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Durham City Bus Travel Durham City Bus Travel

Student film 1971 4 mins Location: Durham

A rough and ready student film goes on the buses in Durham, from early morning to the fag end of the day smokers still allowed in the 1970s.

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New Lives for Old New Lives for Old

Public Information Filler 1957 21 mins Location: Croydon

Nonagenarian croquet players and Brighton day trips feature in this study of social services in Croydon, focussing on help given to the elderly, lonely, sick and disabled.

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Home Beat Policeman Home Beat Policeman

Police drama 1973 7 mins

PC Jim Yates walks his beat on the streets of Notting Hill

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Options Options

Documentary 1972 27 mins Silent Location: Stratford

Slicing ham by day, gliding across a dance floor by night - introducing Mr and Mrs Rainbird, proud owners of a grocery shop on Romford Rd, Newham.

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News in the Making News in the Making

Drama-documentary 1964 24 mins

See how stories made it onto the presses - the old fashioned way - in this fascinating and nostalgic film promoting the Portsmouth Evening News

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Religion and the People Religion and the People

Documentary 1940 14 mins

The social work carried out by churches of all faiths in Britain, including a section on East End Jewish life

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The Priest The Priest

1953 22 mins Location: Romford

Unique amateur documentary: priests and parishioners in the Brentwood diocese

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North Kensington Law Centre North Kensington Law Centre

Documentary 1973 5 mins Location: North Kensington

A pioneering law centre with a radical agenda: ‘bringing law to the people’ in the early 1970s.

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Keeper and Kept Keeper and Kept

1972 11 mins Silent Location: Wakefield

Short documentary about how prison officers are trained and the impact this has at Wakefield maximum security prison.

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Pendeen St John Ambulance Cliff Rescue Pendeen St John Ambulance Cliff Rescue

News 1964 1 mins Silent Location: Pendeen

St John Ambulance volunteers assist in a cliff rescue.

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Beyond the Pylons Beyond the Pylons

Promotional 1945 40 mins Location: Chelmsford

A film about the engineering brothers F. and A. Parkinson and the increased use of electricity.

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Country Parson Country Parson

News 1963 13 mins Location: East Tuddenham

Be it in cassock or country tweed, this rural vicar's role is certainly varied as he juggles his duties as clergyman, advisor, school governor, diplomat and pianist!

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I Am a Mayor I Am a Mayor

Documentary 1961 13 mins Location: Maidenhead

Life and local government in Maidenhead, Berks.

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Telephone Cables: Machine Operation, Dagenham (1950s) Telephone Cables: Machine Operation, Dagenham (1950s)

Sponsored film 1954 4 mins Silent Location: Dagenham

Fascinating glimpse of working life showing women operating machinery at the huge Telephone Cables factory in Dagenham in the late 1950s.

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Looking After Londoners Looking After Londoners

Public Information Filler 1972 24 mins Location: London

From schools to sewers, this film explores the roles and responsibilities of local councils, visiting almost every London borough in the process.

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I Am a Reporter I Am a Reporter

Documentary 1961 12 mins Location: Hertford

The inner-workings of local paper the Hertford Mercury are revealed by young, fresh-thinking reporter Peter Gibbs on his hunt for a regional scoop.

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Our Police Our Police

School programme and Educational film 1947 16 mins Silent Location: Glasgow

Glasgow police on their daily beat are kept busy protecting "your person and your property".

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Along the Line Along the Line

Documentary 1947 15 mins

The romance – and reality – of working on the railways in a handsomely produced recruitment film made shortly before nationalization

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Country Currents Country Currents

1938 10 mins Silent Location: Tarvin

The rural folk of Cheshire a promised a modern life of comfort via the magic of electrification.

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Village School Village School

Documentary 1940 11 mins Location: Ashley Green

WWII evacuees adapt to village life in a patriotic documentary starring a real Buckinghamshire school teacher.

NHS on Film
Free collection

NHS on Film

Film has the power to change lives – and even save them. No surprise, then, that moving images have played an important role in one of the world’s greatest public health services.