Screen Archive South East is a public sector moving image archive serving the South East of England. The archive's collections of magic lantern slides, films, videos and associated materials capture the many varied aspects of life, work and creativity from the early days of screen history to the present day and serve as a rich and invaluable historical resource.
This film is part of Free
Start a Land Club
The wartime potato shortage is addressed in this marvellous film from 1942 - exhorting workers and school children to lend a hand on local farms by joining Land Clubs.
From the collection of:
Overview
A Ministry of Information film which exhorted audiences to start Land Clubs in their local area, using the Surrey Land Club as an example, in order to address food shortages. We see school children, in their uniforms, tilling and harvesting, while young women plant potatoes. City workers work the land while a girl drives a tractor. We also see a committee organising teams of weekend workers to help a potato farmer get his valuable crop sown in time.
In the run up to World War 2 and for the duration of the conflict, new voluntary groups were set up alongside established organisations to provide assistance in emergency health care, welfare, civil defence and farm labouring, as seen in this film from 1942. Civilian men, women, and even children, were encouraged to ‘do their bit’ by joining voluntary organisations like Land Clubs which had been set up to provide assistance for farmers in need of help with working the land. Land Clubs relied on local volunteer participation unlike the Women’s Land Army, whose members were conscripted when, by 1941, it was realised that voluntary service could not fulfil the demand for labour in a time of total war. This government film is a public record, preserved and presented by the BFI National Archive on behalf of The National Archives, home to more than 1,000 years of British history.
Related
Watch for free
West Sussex Home Guard 1 West Sussex Home Guard 1
Instructional film/TV programme 1941 4 mins Silent Location: West Sussex
There's a wrong way and a right way to deal with Nazi spies and fifth-columnists - as you'll see in this this hilarious colour film starring the Home Guard and various Nazi rotters.
Watch for free
Warwork News No 33 Warwork News No 33
Cinemagazine 1943 11 mins
Wartime news magazine for factory workers, sponsored by the Ministry of Supply. News items often stressed the value of the 'factory front'.
Watch for free
Citizen's Army Citizen's Army
Documentary 1941 10 mins Location: London
Ordinary men from all trades and professions lead double lives to hone their soldiering skills in Britain during the Second World War.
Watch for free
When the Pie Was Opened When the Pie Was Opened
Government sponsored film 1941 8 mins
Welcome to an obscure but delightful corner of film history where Masterchef, rationing and surrealism meet public information films.
Watch for free
Family and Friends in War Time Family and Friends in War Time
Home movie 1941 26 mins Silent Location: Pudsey
Forget the war; life goes on in West Yorkshire, with weddings and family days out, the lively Pudsey Carnival and, on the eve of the Battle of Britain, an overflowing Ilkley Lido.
Watch for free
V.E. Day May 8th & 9th 1945 – Thanksgiving Day May 14th 1945 V.E. Day May 8th & 9th 1945 – Thanksgiving Day May 14th 1945
Amateur film 1945 10 mins Silent Location: Gateshead
You can almost hear the cheers in this gorgeous silent film of VE day celebrations on the red, white and blue decked streets of Gateshead
Watch for free
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.
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.