BRITISH FILM INSTITUTE (BFI)

BTF Collection Vol.1 On and Off the Rails (261-mins) (DVD)

Ref: BV116D

Following nationalisation of transport in 1948, the British Transport Commission set up its own in-house film production unit. Launched on 1st.May 1949 and led for 25 years by Edgar Anstey OBE - a founding father of the British documentary movement - it became one of the largest industrial film units in Britain.

This, the first in a series of double DVD sets, contains such classics as "Blue Pullman", "Elizabethan Express", "Snowdrift at Bleath Gill", and "John Betjeman goes by Train", as well as lesser know gems including "Under the River", "This is York" and "This Year - London".

All these films are now preserved in the bfi National Film and Television Archive. This selection has been digitally remastered for this two-disk set.

Disk 1: On the Rails

• Blue Pullman (1960)
• Elizabethan Express (1954)
• Train Time (1952)
• Rail 150 (1975)
• The Diesel Train Driver (1959)
• On Track for the Eighties (1980)
• Cybernetica (1972)

Disk 2: Off the Rails

• Under the River (1959)
• Snowdrift at Bleath Gill (1955)
• This Year - London (1951)
• This is York (1953)
• The Great Highway (1966)
• A Day of One's Own (1956)
• John Betjeman goes by Train (1962)

Price: £20.40 (Including VAT at 20%)
Price: £17.00 Excluding VAT (non-EU countries e.g.Australia)

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BTF Collection Vol.2: See Britain by Train (249-mins) (2xDVD)

Ref: BV117D

This new collection focuses on the beautifully crafted and poetic travelogue films that were made during the 1950s and early 1960s to inspire the public to travel and to promote business. The films are very subtle in their message and whether promoting day return trips, party travel or family holidays, they succeed brilliantly in combining fantasy and reality. In images as diverse as bustling cities, scenes of idyllic rural tranquillity and majestic mountain landscapes, they offer an escapist paradise to a bygone era where permanent sunshine and adventure are just a journey away. See Britain by Train contains over four hours of footage.

Highlights include:

* Cyclists Special (1955) - A very rare and novel film of how British Railways can cater for party travel.

* Holiday (1957) - The 1950s free-cinema movement inspired new styles of non-fiction filmmaking. This film catches all the atmosphere of a traditional holiday by the sea, along with the zest and good humour of ordinary people released from their everyday routine.

* The Heart is Highland (1952) - One of the most popular of all the BTF films shows aspects of the lives of Highlanders, linking developments in industry, agriculture and transport with the country's dramatic past.

* Any Man's Kingdom (1956) - Previously unavailable in the BTF series, this stunning film also captures the heart-warming Northumbrian atmosphere.

* The England of Elizabeth (1957) - This triple international award-winning film looks back in wonder at the Shakespearean era and the time of the first Queen Elizabeth, with commentary narrated by Alec Clunes and a score by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Disc 1

• West Country Journey (1953, col, 26mins)
• Letter for Wales (1960, col & b&w, 25mins)
• Cyclists Special (1955, col, 16mins)
• Holiday (1957, col, 18mins)
• The Heart is Highland (1952, col, 20mins)
• Any Man's Kingdom (1956, col, 20mins)

Disc 2

• Glasgow Belongs to Me (1966, 17mins)
• The England of Elizabeth (1957, col, 27mins)
• Capital Visit (1955, col, 20mins)
• The Heart of England (1954, col, 20mins)
• East Anglian Holiday (1954, col, 20mins)
• The Coasts of Clyde (1959, col, 20mins)

Extras

A booklet containing an introduction and film notes by BTF historian Steven Foxon accompanies the discs.

Price: £20.40 (Including VAT at 20%)
Price: £17.00 Excluding VAT (non-EU countries e.g.Australia)

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BTF Collection Vol.3: Running a Railway (237-mins) (2xDVD)

Ref: BV120D

Running a Railway is the third release in the BFI's digitally re-mastered double-disc DVD series of British Transport Films, combining favourites from the much loved and best-selling video series with additional material. This new collection contains four hours of footage including the multi-award-winning Terminus, directed by John Schlesinger.

Among the rare gems are:

* Farmer Moving South (1952) - The true story of a Yorkshire farmer who decided to sell his land and move his entire stock - cattle, pigs and poultry, machinery, ploughs and tractors - south to Sussex by rail in December on what was the coldest night of the year.

* I am a Litter Basket (1959) - Every day, the people who use railway stations drop hundreds of tons of litter all over the place, while me and my mates have to stand by, empty and starving. Until, one day, we get so desperate, we go foraging for ourselves. And what happens? Take a look at this film. It makes me weep to think of it. I nearly gave up all hope, until - but wait and see!

* Modelling for the Future (1961) - Visions of an earlier Channel Tunnel scheme and a model of the proposed terminal. This film demonstrates a range of facilities and shows the possibilities of an age-old dream - a dry land crossing between England and France.

* The Third Sam (1962) - Sam Smith is taught to drive an electric locomotive. He learns the new job without difficulty but one day his train breaks down and Sam summons up three sides of his character to deal with the emergency. With narration, in typical rhyming monologue, by Stanley Holloway, this is an original and amusing approach to instructional filmmaking.

* E for Experimental (1975) - An account of the development of British Rail's experimental Advanced Passenger Train (APT) The film explains in simple terms some of the many novel design features of the APT, including the tilt mechanism and the hydro-kinetic brake, and shows the train in action during its trials.

Disk 1

• Operation London Bridge (1975/col/18mins)
• Wires Over the Border (1974/col/18mins)
• Groundwork for Progress (1959/b&w/30mins)
• Making Tracks (1956/b&w/17mins)
• E for Experimental (1975/col/20mins)
• Modelling for the Future (1961/col/8mins)
• Britannia - A Bridge (1973/col/19mins)

Disc Two

• Terminus (1961/col/20mins)
• Fully Fitted Freight (1957/b&w/21mins)
• Farmer Moving South (1952/b&w/17mins)
• I am a Litter Basket (1959/b&w/7mins)
• The Third Sam (1962/b&w/10mins)
• People Like Us (1962/b&w/9mins)
• A Future on Rail (1957/b&w/10mins)

Extras

A booklet containing an introduction and film notes by BTF historian Steven Foxon accompanies the discs.

Price: £20.40 (Including VAT at 20%)
Price: £17.00 Excluding VAT (non-EU countries e.g.Australia)

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BTF Collection Vol.4: Reshaping British Railways (247-mins) (DVD)

Ref: BV121D

The fourteen films of Reshaping British Railways take a look at significant events from 1951 to 1978, highlighting the case for change to a cleaner, more efficient motive power. The films look at the 'Indian summer' of steam traction, the Modernisation Plan of 1955 and its introduction of the diesel rail-car, the 'reshaping' or pruning of the network masterminded by Dr Richard Beeching, British Rail's progress into the 1960s with the Inter-City and Freightliner concepts, and the approach to the new age of the High Speed Train.

The DVD contains classics of their time like Wash and Brush Up, Service for Southend, Forward to First Principles, Plumb-Loco, Overture One-Two-Five and the famous Let's Go To Birmingham. Also included are rarities such as A Place in the Team, Freight and a City and Second Nature, which have never previously been available to watch at home.

All these films are now preserved in the BFI National Archive. They have been digitally re-mastered for this release, which will fascinate not only transport enthusiasts but also fans of historical British documentary film making

A colour booklet containing an introduction and film notes by BTF historian Steven Foxon who programmes this series accompanies the discs.

Disk 1

• Work in Progress (1951)
• Wash and Brush Up (1953)
• A Place in the Team (1953)
• Service for Southend (1957)
• Diesel Train Ride (1959)
• Let's Go to Birmingham (1962)
• Reshaping British Railways (1963)

Disc two

• Forward to First Principles (1966)
• Freight and a City (1966)
• Second Nature (1967)
• The New Tradition (1968)
• Plumb-Loco (1971)
• This Year by Rail (1972)
• Overture One-Two-Five (1978)

Price: £20.40 (Including VAT at 20%)
Price: £17.00 Excluding VAT (non-EU countries e.g.Australia)

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BTF Collection Vol 5: Off the Beaten Track (304-mins) (2xDVD)

Ref: BV124D

Films included in this DVD earned BTF some of its highest accolades, including an Oscar for Wild Wings (Best short live action subject in 1966) and Oscar nominations for Journey into Spring (1957) and Between the Tides (1958). Among the rare gems here are The Scene from Melbury House and An Artist Looks At Churches .

All these films are now preserved in the BFI National Archive. They have been digitally re-mastered for this collection, which will fascinate not only transport enthusiasts but also fans of historical British documentary filmmaking. A colour booklet containing an introduction and film notes by BTF historian Steven Foxon who programmes this series accompanies the discs.

Disk 1

• Ocean Terminal (1952)
• Dodging the Column (1952)
• Link Span (1956)
• Every Valley (1957)
• Journey into Spring (1957)
• Between the Tides (1958)
• Giant Load (1958)

Disk two

• They Take the High Road (1960)
• Wild Highlands (1961)
• Wild Wings (1965)
• An Artist Looks at Churches (1959)
• Railways For Ever! (1970)
• The Scene From Melbury House (1972)
• Age of Invention (1975)
• Seaspeed Express (1980)

Price: £20.40 (Including VAT at 20%)
Price: £17.00 Excluding VAT (non-EU countries e.g.Australia)

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LOST WORLD MITCHELL/KENYON (??-mins) ()

Ref: BV122D

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GEOFFREY JONES RHYTHM FILM (??-mins) ()

Ref: BV118D

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