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Building a British Railway
The railways are one of the glories of British engineering, and their maintenance remains a Herculean task.
The Victorians left us with a network of stunning complexity, but the technology has changed beyond recognition. Even at the end of the Victorian age - as moving pictures arrived on the scene - engineers were grappling with the challenges of adapting a railway for the 20th century. Film cameras have witnessed every major development since then, from constructing locomotives to replacing bridges, to dieselisation and electrification. These films are a stunning record of the sheer effort and invention required to keep Britain on the rails.
Mining Review 19th Year No. 11Mining Review 19th Year No. 11
1966 11 mins Location: Castleford
Coal touched all our lives, as this issue of the cinemagazine demonstrates with items on a miner's wife turned mayor, a Coal Board chess team and more.
EnginemenEnginemen
Documentary 1959 17 mins
This poetic Free Cinema documentary, filmed near Manchester, reflects on the changing world of the engineman.
Great Northern Railway Works at Doncaster (1901)Great Northern Railway Works at Doncaster (1901)
Documentary 1900 6 minsSilent Location: Doncaster
Countless men, women and children spill out on to the screen from "The Plant" at the heart of the Yorkshire railway town.
Severn Valley RailwaySevern Valley Railway
News 1976 7 mins Location: Bridgnorth
Is Chris Tarrant up to shovelling a ton and a half of coal to keep the fire burning and the steam up between Bridgnorth and Bewdley?
Repairing Track After Mustard Gas AttackRepairing Track After Mustard Gas Attack
Industry sponsored film 1939 45 minsSilent Location: Northampton
With the horrific effects of gas warfare still fresh in the memory, rubberised men β like extras from a 1950s British sci fi movie β prepare for more, with 1940s attention to detail.
Railways - Derelict and PreservedRailways - Derelict and Preserved
Amateur film 1975 33 minsSilent Location: Rainhill
Come and see Rocket 150, and visit a selection of railway locations, past and preserved.
Employees Leaving Furness Railway Works, Barrow (1901)Employees Leaving Furness Railway Works, Barrow (1901)
Non-Fiction 1901 1 minsSilent Location: Barrow-In-Furness
An all-male Edwardian crowd is filmed leaving work in the north western town.
Margam Marshalling Yard - the system of automatic controlMargam Marshalling Yard - the system of automatic control
Industry sponsored film 1961 20 mins Location: Margam
Skill, ingenuity and gravity, combined with a βhumpβ or slope, have produced Europeβs first automated yard for organising thousands of railway wagons at Margam, Port Talbot.
Reconstruction of Hill Street BirminghamReconstruction of Hill Street Birmingham
Industry sponsored film 1949 53 minsSilent Location: Birmingham
An engineering feat: Second city civil engineers complete a new bridge to carry traffic over New Street's tangled railway intersections.
Employees Leaving North Eastern Engine Works, Gateshead (1901)Employees Leaving North Eastern Engine Works, Gateshead (1901)
Non-Fiction 1901 3 minsSilent Location: Gateshead
A tide of flat-capped rail factory workers is ushered past the camera after a day's work.
Taunton Train YardTaunton Train Yard
Current affairs 1975 0 minsSilent Location: Taunton
British Rail Class 35 no. 7017 Diesel Engine and the locomotive Vulcan await their fate at Taunton Train Yard
Cardiff - trains, docks unloading/loadingCardiff - trains, docks unloading/loading
Home movie 1947 2 minsSilent Location: Cardiff/Caerdydd
Dockers move timber, a signalman moves points: Chris Jenkins, amateur film-maker and proprietor of a Cardiff hair salon, tries his hand at filming an industrial landscape.
The Official Film of the Railway CentenaryThe Official Film of the Railway Centenary
Non-Fiction 1925 19 minsSilent Location: Darlington
A grand parade of locomotives to celebrate 100 years of railways and the worldβs first passenger trains
Minera 'Mineral'Minera 'Mineral'
Home movie 1965 14 mins Location: Coedpoeth
Follow the journey of the empty βMineralβ train (small, cheap wagons used to transport mine products) from Brymbo Steelworks to Minera (limestone) Quarry via Coedpoeth.
Railway Scrapyard - BarryRailway Scrapyard - Barry
Home movie 1981 8 mins Location: Barry/Barri
βHelpβ, βSave meβ, βI need a homeβ, are the cries inscribed on the scrapped engines at Woodham Brothers Scrapyard, Barry. Other messages are warnings e.g. βDo not take parts!!β.
LNER Manufacture of Switches and CrossingsLNER Manufacture of Switches and Crossings
Non-Fiction 1946 6 minsSilent Location: Gateshead
Despite the thousands of railway films, there must be few that show the detailed construction of sections of railway track inside a workshop just after the last war, as seen here.
Assembling track at Chalk Lane Sidings, HullAssembling track at Chalk Lane Sidings, Hull
Non-Fiction 1957 22 minsSilent Location: Hessle
This is a fascinating, and somewhat puzzling, film of railway workers assembling a large section of crossover track, apparently not in situ.
Buffer Stop Tests at BradfordBuffer Stop Tests at Bradford
Industry sponsored film 1945 7 minsSilent Location: Bradford
What with all the loose shunting, it isnβt surprising that buffer stops were given a gruelling examination, although both the buffers and the tests are rather unconvincing.
Snow and FloodSnow and Flood
Industry sponsored film 1947 17 minsSilent Location: Barras
Like a scene from Dr Zhivago, this train struggles through spectacular blizzards as gangs of men armed with shovels attempt to clear the 30 foot high snow drifts over the Pennines.
Review 33rd Year No. 10Review 33rd Year No. 10
Cinemagazine 1980 10 mins
Between the power station and the coal mine, British Rail runs a coal train service right around the clock
Walton St. Xing - NewWalton St. Xing - New
Industry sponsored film 1963 5 minsSilent Location: Kingston upon Hull
A time when milk floats were commonly seen on our roads, along with Ariel motorcycles, helmets with leather ear coverings and the local corner shop was advertised on a hoarding.
Remodelling Church Fenton North JunctionRemodelling Church Fenton North Junction
Industry sponsored film 1948 15 minsSilent Location: Church Fenton
With not a high vis vest in sight, dozens of men in overcoats, welding shovels and crowbars, seemingly just lolling around, get to work replacing large sections of railway track.
Unloading Girders at Skelton BridgeUnloading Girders at Skelton Bridge
Industry sponsored film 1930 6 minsSilent Location: Skelton
A workman balances on the edge of a swing bridge, some 80 foot above the Ouse, instructing the placement of a 680 ton girder. Is this an extension or just running repairs?
Mining Review 6th Year No. 3Mining Review 6th Year No. 3
Cinemagazine 1952 8 mins Location: Calverton
New colliery opens at Calverton in Nottinghamshire and a visit to Rugby Locomotive Testing Station
Hartlepool Sleeper DepotHartlepool Sleeper Depot
Industry sponsored film 1957 13 minsSilent Location: Hartlepool
The life of a railway sleeper is not an easy one, and here they get prepared for the rain, the snow and ice, and the thousands of tons of steel hurtling over them, day in day out.
Railwayβ¦Railwayβ¦
Documentary 1974 13 mins Location: Goathland
Desolate stations, abandoned locos and derelict tracks under grey skies become transformed by dedicated volunteers, unmotivated by money, into a marvellous steam railway.
Men on the MendMen on the Mend
Documentary 1956 12 mins Location: Swindon
Injured British Rail employees are put on the railroad to health at Swindon Works
Building a British Railway - Constructing the LocomotiveBuilding a British Railway - Constructing the Locomotive
Non-Fiction 1911 12 minsSilent
Magnificent glimpses inside Creweβs famous works - where a steam loco takes shape before our eyes
Work Study and Tom HowardWork Study and Tom Howard
Documentary 1958 20 minsSilent
Railwaymen learn to love work study in this fascinating training film.
Brunel's Railway Today : Intercity Paddington-bristolBrunel's Railway Today : Intercity Paddington-bristol
1985 10 minsSilent
150th anniversary of the Great Western Railway: the official film
Great Yarmouth Dockside RailwayGreat Yarmouth Dockside Railway
Amateur film 1930 3 minsSilent Location: Great Yarmouth
Thereβs an obliging pose for the camera by a brawny and tattooed docker as his fellow workers push the freight along Yarmouthβs Rail Line.
Railway Scenes - WilmslowRailway Scenes - Wilmslow
Amateur film 1959 16 minsSilent Location: Wilmslow
From diesel to electrification - a miscellany of railway footage in Cheshire.
Railways TodayRailways Today
Documentary 1947 16 mins
Is nationalisation the answer to Britain's post-war railway problems? The Labour government thinks so.
Land of InventionLand of Invention
Documentary 1941 11 mins Location: Edinburgh
Scotland is celebrated as a crucible of the modern age in this profile of a "strange, restless, enquiring country"
Diesel Power on British RailwaysDiesel Power on British Railways
Promotional 1965 5 mins
A variety compilation of British Railways' first generation of diesel locomotives on display and in action.
Railway Bridge across the ThamesRailway Bridge across the Thames
Documentary 1968 30 mins Location: Victoria Sta
The Grosvenor Railway Bridge gets a 1960s upgrade while trains continue to thunder over it - an impressive engineering feat
A Visit to Locomotive Works, CreweA Visit to Locomotive Works, Crewe
1913 6 minsSilent Location: Crewe
The lengthy process of building a Claughton class locomotive is shortened through the magic of moving image
Careful CharlieCareful Charlie
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1970 3 mins
Cartoon calamities are in store for the proper Charlie in this rail worker safety message, but there's serious advice too
The Building of a Locomotive at CreweThe Building of a Locomotive at Crewe
Non-Fiction 1920 7 minsSilent Location: Swindon
A 1920 mistitled re-release of the construction of a Great Western Railway 'Star' Class locomotive at Swindon.
Five in MillionsFive in Millions
Promotional 1978 27 mins
From Cheshire to Cornwall, Lincoln to the Rhondda, a round-Britain tour via British Railβs parcel service.