The Media Archive for Central England is the public screen archive for the East and West Midlands. An independent charity and company based at the University of Lincoln, MACE acquires, catalogues, preserves and makes widely available moving image materials that inform our understanding of the diverse cultures and histories of communities between the Lincolnshire coast and the Welsh border.
This film is part of Free
Wheelchair Access
From Selly Oak to Birmingham's Head Post Office in a wheelchair - how hard could it be?
From the collection of:
Overview
In 1981 able-bodied news reporter Jon Lander spent a day in a wheelchair pretending to be disabled and struggling through Birmingham. The fact that not one disabled person features is telling but Lander does make some good points. He's treated like a piece of luggage by British Rail and in the city centre it's no better with four people having to haul him into the Head Post Office. And as for boarding a bus - it's going to be 20 years before an accessible one turns up.
Jon Lander's film report was broadcast as part of the ATV political series Left Right and Centre. Wheelchair-simulation exercises like these were used a lot to raise public awareness about poor accessibility in the 1980s but their value and impact to remove barriers and change a disabling society has since been questioned.
Related
Eyes of a Child Eyes of a Child
Government sponsored film 1961 31 mins Location: Dorton Ho (Sch)
Young imaginations run wild at School for Blind Children.
An Ordinary Life An Ordinary Life
1985 29 mins
βIβd much rather work at a computer than make wicker basketsβ β disabled people hit the mainstream in 1980s Britain
It's a New World It's a New World
Instructional film/TV programme 1977 30 mins
Early attempts at inclusive swimming for disabled people.
Three for Society Three for Society
1969 29 mins
Feisty and free-spirited, three disabled people talk frankly and directly about the barriers they experience in the 1960s
Like Other People Like Other People
Documentary 1972 51 mins
Man Alive! moral panic, sex, and when professionals ruled β life as a disabled couple in 1972
Artificial Limb Making Artificial Limb Making
Non-Fiction 1916 1 mins Silent
Occupational therapy turns full circle, as amputee soldiers learn to make artificial limbs for others
Street Prospect Street Prospect
Documentary 1947 15 mins Silent Location: Bournville
A look at landscape treatment in residential areas, contrasting Bournville with Selly Oak, Birmingham
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.
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.
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.