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Governor's Notebook 3

Delight in this rare colour footage of the Queen as she tours the scenic north coast on the Royal Train.

Amateur film 1953 4 mins Silent

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Overview

Less than four minutes of colour film reveals how much has happened in three crowded and glorious days. Meet the thousands of people who turned out in small towns and in the fields that line the railway track just to glimpse the new monarch. The whistle stop tour climaxes as the royals make a dramatic entrance to Derry on the deck of the HMS Rocket. As hosts the Wakehursts have immortalized through film their sense that this visit was a great privilege and a moving experience.

John de Vere Loder, 2nd Baron Wakehurst (1895-1970) was Governor of Northern Ireland from 1952-1964. Throughout his life he was a prolific filmmaker who used his privileged access to capture historic moments in glorious colour.
These are previously unseen colour rushes from A Governor’s Notebook. The finished film was released in black and white. It is a personal record of scenes that Lord and Lady Wakehurst like to remember from their time in Northern Ireland. During the Royal visit Lord Wakehurst declared a public holiday to encourage as many people as possible to come out and see the new Queen with Prince Phillip. These scenes are a stark contrast to the tight security of future visits.

Original title

Governor's Notebook (rushes) 3

Director

Genres

Amateur film and Travelogue

Country

Northern Ireland

Location

ColeraineBallymenaDerry / Londonderry

Language

English

Subjects

State visits Queen Elizabeth 2 Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (1921-) Railway journeys Ships Crowd scenes Mayors Flax (crop) Sheep shearing 1950s

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