This film is part of Free
Rural Reconditioning
Grand Designs of the 1930s: rural slums turned into country cottages with the help of government money.
Overview
Home makeover, 1930s style: this amateur film looks at a number of rural houses redeveloped from top to bottom to make viable modern homes. These aren't country cottage weekend retreats, but essential agricultural housing. The Housing (Rural Workers) Act of 1926 was part of a wider attempt to deal with slum housing in Britain, which was not just an urban issue but affected workers on the land too.
Matthew Nathan was a prolific 'pro-am', or semi-professional, cineaste for over 50 years, making films into the 1980s. This was the second of two films he made for The Housing Centre Trust (a voluntary organisation that discussed housing issues), the other of which looked at urban housing.
Related
The Open Road The Open Road
Travelogue 2006 65 mins Location: Land's End
Startling colour photography of 1920s Britain imbues Claude Friese-Greene’s 1920s road trip around Britain.
Clyde River Clyde River
Travelogue 1939 17 mins Location: Lanark
A trip from source to sea along the banks of the Clyde in a lesser-spotted Scotland where the sun always shines.
Laura Mulvey in Conversation Laura Mulvey in Conversation
Inside Film 2025 76 mins
Laura Mulvey in conversation, following her BFI Fellowship Award.
George Clooney in Conversation George Clooney in Conversation
Inside Film 2025 74 mins
George Clooney visited BFI Southbank to look back on his life and career.
Chloé Zhao Screen Talk | BFI London Film Festival 2025 Chloé Zhao Screen Talk | BFI London Film Festival 2025
Inside Film 2025 65 mins
The Oscar®- winning director of Nomadland discusses her unique approach to filmmaking and the inspiration behind the adaptation of Hamnet.
Edgar Wright on The Running Man Edgar Wright on The Running Man
Inside Film 2025 28 mins
The director talks to Mark Kermode about putting Stephen King's dystopian life-or-death gameshow thriller through its paces.
Richard Linklater Screen Talk | BFI London Film Festival 2025 Richard Linklater Screen Talk | BFI London Film Festival 2025
Inside Film 2025 69 mins
Richard Linklater discusses his remarkable and wide-ranging body of work, including Blue Moon and Nouvelle Vague.
Daniel Day-Lewis Screen Talk | BFI London Film Festival 2025 Daniel Day-Lewis Screen Talk | BFI London Film Festival 2025
Inside Film 2025 73 mins
Daniel Day-Lewis, the ultimate actor’s actor discusses his career in conversation with Mark Kermode.