The Box is a major cultural and heritage attraction and archive, which opened in Plymouth’s city centre in September 2020. Its collection, formally the South West Film and Television Archive (SWFTA), is the regional film archive for the South West of England, comprising the combined programme libraries of Westward Television and Television South West (TSW). It also includes a significant number of donated film collections dating back to the early 1890s.
This film is part of Free
Halloween Hubble Bubble
Children of a Devon primary school try to explain what happens on All Hallows Eve.
From the collection of:
Overview
Halloween comes from All Hallows Eve, or the evening before All Saints Day on November 1 followed by All Souls Day on November 2 and traditional commemorations of the dead. Mexico holds large public festivals to celebrate the Day of the Innocents and the Day of the Dead. In the UK hollowing out vegetables may have pagan origins and apple-bobbing is thought to remind people of the medieval dunking used to determine if a woman were a witch or not. What would you do if you met a witch?
Punky lantern processions with carved mangelwurzerls and hollowing out pumpkins have long been traditional. As in Mexico, it is believed the spirits of the dead come alive to walk among the living and so the living dress to assimilate in order to come to no harm. The celebrations were banned under the protestant Puritans in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, but are today the focus of ghoul costumes, ghostly happenings and retelling of horror stories for a true fright night! These primary age children recite Shakespeare's Macbeth and the three witches song of Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and caldron bubble. Hubble Bubble, Toil and Trouble was popularised by Disney.
Related
Watch for free
Barnstaple Fair Barnstaple Fair
Non-Fiction 1915 3 mins Silent Location: Barnstaple
Roll up, the fair's in town - even with a war on.
Watch for free
Barnstaple Fair in the 1920s Barnstaple Fair in the 1920s
Amateur film 1926 5 mins Silent Location: Barnstaple
Join the crowds in Barnstaple for fairground attractions
Watch for free
View from an Engine Front - Barnstaple View from an Engine Front - Barnstaple
Non-Fiction 1898 2 mins Silent Location: Barnstaple
A 'phantom ride' along a fondly remembered Devon railway, crossing the distinctive Taw Bridge into Barnstaple on the way to Ilfracombe
Watch for free
Barnstaple Town v Exeter City Barnstaple Town v Exeter City
Non-Fiction 1980 0 mins Location: Barnstaple
Barnstaple in pre-season friendly against Exeter City
Watch for free
Building and Launch of the "Crepath" at Barnstaple Building and Launch of the "Crepath" at Barnstaple
Non-Fiction 1918 5 mins Silent Location: Barnstaple
Barnstaple's experimental concrete-hulled ship gets a visit from a jolly Italian admiral.
Watch for free
Barnstaple Skateboard Park Competition Barnstaple Skateboard Park Competition
News 1978 1 mins Silent Location: Barnstaple
Sidewalk surfing - Skatepark holds a tournament
Watch for free
Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A Starve Acre - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 24 mins
Daniel Kokotajlo talks to Nia Childs about Starve Acre, his folk horror about a couple digging deep into grief in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales.
Watch for free
Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A Sky Peals - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2024 30 mins
Sky Peals director Moin Hussain and lead actor Faraz Ayub talk to Tomisin Adepeju about their magic realist drama.
Watch for free
Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell Inside the Archive: The Early Films of Michael Powell
Documentary 2024 42 mins
Documentary exploring the BFI National Archive’s role in rediscovering and remastering the early films of Michael Powell.
Watch for free
Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels Inside the Archive: The Riviera Revels
Short documentary 2024 12 mins
Bryony Dixon, curator of silent film at the BFI national archive, explores the origins of a series of comic travelogues, and Michael Powell's involvement in making them.
Watch for free
New Perspectives: Oldboy New Perspectives: Oldboy
Short documentary 2024 4 mins
Discover why Dan George of Northumbria University believes everyone should experience Oldboy at least once.
Watch for free
New Perspectives: Wings of Desire New Perspectives: Wings of Desire
Short documentary 2024 4 mins
Trixie Parkin-Christie of Northumbria University offers fresh insight into why Wings of Desire remains essential viewing.