The Yorkshire Film Archive collects, preserves, and shows film made in, or about Yorkshire. Our collections are non-fiction, dating from the 1890s to the present day, and providing a rich and visually compelling record of all aspects of lives, cultures, landscape, industries, major events and everyday activities, many of which are available to watch, free of charge, on our website.
This film is part of Free
LNER Manufacture of Switches and Crossings
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.
From the collection of:
Overview
This is a film of a railway workshop of the London and North Eastern Railway where a rail crossover is being constructed, possibly made just prior to railway nationalisation in 1948.
It isnβt known who made this film, or where, or exactly what year it is. The London and North Eastern Railway was the second largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921, but the workshop is most probably in Yorkshire or the North East. The section of track being constructed is marked with βLow Fellβ, which is near to Gateshead and part of the East Coast Main Line. There was a large maintenance backlog as a result of the war.
Related
Mining Review 19th Year No. 11 Mining 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.
Enginemen Enginemen
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 mins Silent 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 Railway Severn 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 Attack Repairing Track After Mustard Gas Attack
Industry sponsored film 1939 45 mins Silent 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 Preserved Railways - Derelict and Preserved
Amateur film 1975 33 mins Silent Location: Rainhill
Come and see Rocket 150, and visit a selection of railway locations, past and preserved.
National Garden Festival Gateshead National Garden Festival Gateshead
Amateur film 1990 9 mins Silent Location: Gateshead
Experience the spectacle of landscape gardening on a grand scale in Gateshead.
Gateshead Games Gateshead Games
Amateur film 1974 8 mins Silent Location: Gateshead
Witness a world record-beating race on home ground by Gatesheadβs local sporting hero, Brendan Foster.
Eartha Kitt Interview Eartha Kitt Interview
Magazine and Review show 1971 3 mins Location: Gateshead
Interview with the blacklisted American entertainer and activist Eartha Kitt who purred her way to success.
County of Northumberland County of Northumberland
Amateur film 1963 19 mins Silent Location: Holy Island
The toe-dipping delights and tranquillity of the Northumbrian Riviera and beyond.
The Film of the Film of the Film The Film of the Film of the Film
Amateur film 1977 3 mins Location: Gateshead
A double, double take on the art of making amateur movies in a 50th anniversary celebration for the Newcastle and District ACA.
Metro: The Way Ahead Metro: The Way Ahead
Promotional 1984 27 mins Location: Newcastle upon Tyne
The fast track to an ambitious new Metro system that ends commuter misery on Tyneside in the 80s.
China O'Brien: The Reunion China O'Brien: The Reunion
Documentary 2024 60 mins
Cynthia Rothrock, Richard Norton and Keith Cooke reunite three decades on from the groundbreaking martial arts classic.
Women in Action Panel Discussion Women in Action Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 28 mins
Action Xtreme - the UK's leading action film studio - hosts this panel discussion with four leading women in action cinema - Soo Cole, Jo Rolison, Jadey Duffield and Ioanna Karavela.
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.
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.
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 Archiveβs role in rediscovering and remastering the early films of Michael Powell.
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.