Rentals
Black Lives
Portraits of public and private lives against the shifting social climate of 20th century Britain.
Black communities, like many minority groups, have long been ill-served by a mainstream British media accustomed to reflecting predominantly white, middle-class lives - a problem entrenched in the second half of the 20th century with the rise of television. Yet a rich tapestry of work from across the boundaries of fiction and non-fiction, film and TV, made for (though not always by) black people, does exist. This selection contains many surprises – some joyous, some sobering, some heartbreaking – and highlights the often painfully slow progress in addressing negative representations and stereotypes on screen. Impassioned and sometimes violent dispatches from the front line in the fight for racial equality can be found here, but so too can records of progress: in the pioneers breaking new ground in culture, politics and sport, and in the more mundane glimpses of everyday life. And this story is not just London’s story: the selection takes a journey around Britain, to a Nigerian wedding in 1960s Cornwall, an ‘African village’ in Essex and a Caribbean restaurant opening in West Bromwich; Newcastle, meanwhile, plays host to not one but two black luminaries, Martin Luther King and Muhammed Ali.
Born in-a BabylonBorn in-a Babylon
Documentary 2000 35 minsDirector: Nicolas Chaudeurge
A portrait of Rastafarians living in Tottenham at the start of the new millennium.
ImmigrantsImmigrants
Documentary 1965 25 minsDirector: Peter Davis and Staffan Lamm
A fascinating, unsettling study of immigration in 1960s English cities.
Negro next DoorNegro next Door
Current affairs 1965 27 minsDirector: Peter Robinson
The white residents of a Leeds suburb express their troubling thoughts on their new black neighbours.
Mixed MarriagesMixed Marriages
1958 14 minsDirector: Rollo Gamble
Broadcaster Daniel Farson explores different points of view about interracial marriages from 'ordinary' people.
Sid's FamilySid's Family
Documentary 1972 49 minsDirector: Nick Gifford
You know Seven Up, but have you heard of Sid's Trilogy? See life through Jamaican-born father Sid's eyes in this 70s doc
Good FatherGood Father
Documentary 1980 59 minsDirector: Nick Gifford
You'll be delighted to meet Sid Williams and his six children, from Montpelier in Bristol, in this engaging documentary
Coloured Voting - Hidden IssueColoured Voting - Hidden Issue
Factual TV 1964 14 minsDirector: James Butler
Current affairs programme from Birmingham investigating the possible impact that immigration and racial prejudice may have on the upcoming election.
Black MuslimsBlack Muslims
Documentary 1963 11 mins
Remarkable interview with Malcolm X, spokesman for the Nation of Islam, about police brutality against black Muslims in LA
This Question of ColourThis Question of Colour
Documentary 1965 29 minsDirector: William Brayne
Dcumentary about race relations in Britain from a US standpoint, including a report on the 1964 election in Smethwick.
Coloured School LeaversColoured School Leavers
Current affairs 1965 27 minsDirector: Peter Robinson
Black school leavers talk about their career aspirations and the discrimination they may face in the world of work.
Blood Ah Go RunBlood Ah Go Run
Documentary 1982 13 minsDirector: Menelik Shabazz and Imruh Caesar
This documentary by Menelik Shabazz (Burning an Illusion) about the response to the New Cross Fire in 1981 prefigures the widespread social unrest later that year.
RootedRooted
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1997 4 minsDirector: Victor Olusola Opeyokun
Animated awakening: a young black man in an oppressive urban environment finds a new outlook by embracing his African roots
Blacks BritannicaBlacks Britannica
Campaigning film 1978 57 minsDirector: David Koff
British racism is discussed in the context of the class struggle in this powerful American documentary.
The Sailor's ReturnThe Sailor's Return
Period drama 1978 104 minsSilentDirector: Jack Gold
Fascinating tale, set in 19th century Dorset, of an African woman who faces prejudice when she falls in love with an Englishman.
Hot Summer NightHot Summer Night
Drama 1959 82 minsDirector: Ted Kotcheff
A progressive union boss is confronted with his family's prejudices when his daughter brings home her black boyfriend.
Dread Beat and BloodDread Beat and Blood
Biopic 1979 44 minsDirector: Franco Rosso
Vibrant documentary portrait of dub poet and activist Linton Kwesi Johnson, fighting racism with the spoken word on the streets of 1970s Brixton.
Omega RisingOmega Rising
1988 50 minsDirector: D. Elmina Davis
The women of Rastafari talk about their relationship to the movement’s development.
More Black Lives films from our Free collection.