This film is part of Free
Tilly and the Fire Engines
Mischievous sisters Tilly and Sally borrow a fire engine and take it for a joy ride in this spirited film comedy.
Overview
Disobedient, mischievous and anarchic, the Tilly sisters lit up a popular series of film comedies in the early 1910s. In this episode, Tilly and Sally purloin a horse-drawn fire engine and take it for a joy ride. Fixing the hose to a hydrant they proceed to drench their pursuers before awarding themselves medals for bravery. The film is sadly incomplete - having lost about half its footage - but it does retain the 'emblematic shot' at the end. This was a comedy convention in the 1900s and 1901s adopted from the music hall: the film closes with a close up of the performers, as if it were their curtain call.
The Tilly films were an occasional series of comedies starring Tilly and Sally as a pair of independent-spirited girls who cause havoc in pursuit of fun. The Hepworth Manufacturing Company released nearly 20 Tilly comedies between 1910 and 1915.
Related
The Perfect Woman The Perfect Woman
Comedy 1949 87 mins
In a bid to improve on nature, a scientist creates a robot female. But the experiment doesn't quite turn out as planned...
Something Completely Different Something Completely Different
1974 4 mins Silent Location: Doune
Join John Cleese and the cast of Monty Python and the Holy Grail on location in Scotland
Miranda Miranda
Comedy 1948 80 mins
A man goes fishing and comes home with a most unusual catch in this comedy feature.
Is This a Record? Is This a Record?
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1973 22 mins
Pythons join Frank Muir, Connie Booth and Willie Rushton celebrating the Guinness Book of Records.
Le Petomane Le Petomane
Comedy 1979 33 mins
The immortal Leonard Rossiter makes flatulence a fine art in this short, poignant comedy-drama from Hancock writers Galton and Simpson
Arthur? Arthur! Arthur? Arthur!
Comedy 1969 101 mins Location: Camden
A hen-pecked inventor plots murder while he leads a bizarre double life as a bewigged playboy who runs a dating agency
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.
Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.
Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.
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.
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.