At Wessex Film and Sound Archive you can see and hear history, from late Victorian times to the present day, through moving images and sound recordings. The Archive contains over 36,000 film and sound recordings relating to Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, including film and tapes of local TV and radio.
This film is currently unavailable
Video Player is loading.
Screen Tests
There's a hint of the Radclyffe Halls in this peculiar film of actors emoting like crazy, before it's off to Boscombe for some beserk beach antics and a gathering in the country.
From the collection of:
Overview
This bizarre film from 1930 shows actors from the Bournemouth Amateur Film Society demonstrating their wildy eccentric and slightly naughty performances before the camera. The scene the shifts to Boscombe beach where a comic scenario is being enacted - with lots of kissing, larceny, drunkenness and violence. This is a plot where the hero gets his comeuppance and the villain gets the girl. Lastly, we see the Society arriving at a country residence and posing for the camera.
Related
Watch for free
Hints and Hobbies No.11 Hints and Hobbies No.11
Cinemagazine 1926 14 mins Silent
Jiu-jitsu for ladies, how to get ink off a white apron and other life essentials courtesy of the 'Hints and Hobbies' team.
Watch for free
Lobsters Lobsters
Documentary 1936 15 mins
Follow the life cycle of the king of crustaceans in this quirky documentary by Bauhaus artist LΓ‘szlΓ³ Moholy-Nagy.
Watch for free
Audrey Hepburn Test Audrey Hepburn Test
1952 6 mins Silent
The future Holly Golightly exudes a certain grace even for a modest screen test, in the earliest known colour footage of the timeless star.
Currently unavailable
Facts and Fancies Facts and Fancies
Documentary 1951 24 mins
Joan Collins gets to grips with the by-products of coal in her first screen appearance
Watch for free
Cabtrack The Direct Auto-control Personal Taxi Service Cabtrack The Direct Auto-control Personal Taxi Service
Government sponsored film 1972 16 mins Location: London
Could computer-controlled taxis solve the traffic crisis? Maybe not, but this film's a must for technology buffs (and fans of early electronic music).
Currently unavailable
Is This Your Life? Is This Your Life?
Amateur film 1957 9 mins Silent
An unusual and visually sophisticated commentary on the routine drabness and drudgery of everyday suburban existence.
Watch for free
Layla - Exclusive Q&A Layla - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 27 mins
Writer, director and performer Amrou Al-Kadhi talks to Rico Johnson-Sinclair about their debut feature.
Watch for free
All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 28 mins
Payal Kapadia discusses her Cannes prize-winning and Bafta-nominated drama with Ashanti Omkar.
Watch for free
Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.
Watch for free
Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
Documentary 2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.
Watch for free
Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of childrenβs palliative care.
Watch for free
Police Story: Panel Discussion Police Story: Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 24 mins
Panel discussion on Jackie Chan's 1985 action classic Police Story, with Chase Armitage, Sam Mak and Jadey Duffield.