This film is part of Free
British Union of Fascists March October 3rd 1937
Led by Oswald Mosley, Britain’s Fascists march through south London
Overview
A year after the Battle of Cable Street, Oswald Mosley’s Fascists are again out in force, seeking to claim the streets of London for their own. Ostensibly marking five years of the British Union of Fascists, the march provocatively took place a year, almost to the day, after the Cable Street clashes (those were 4th October; this is 3rd October) and again ended in confrontation. This footage was shot earlier in the day.
There are no Blackshirts here - uniformed marching was banned earlier in 1937 - but the sheer size of the march is disturbing. So is the unsettling mixture of people - many grimacing, menacing young men but also many women, older men and even children who would seem utterly ordinary in another context devoid of the paraphernalia and salutes. As indicated by the opening title, these are rushes, i.e. unedited camera material - almost certainly professionally shot, probably by one of the newsreel companies. Norman’s Film Service was a footage library that seems to have acquired discarded footage from labs or other sources.
Related
Simcha Simcha
Documentary 2000 12 mins
Extremely rare insight in the role of a Hasidic woman, featuring a mother-daughter team who live in North London.
Some of My Best Friends Some of My Best Friends
Documentary 1969 30 mins Location: Westminster
Jewish people - and a few Gentiles - muse on what it means to be Jewish in 1960s Britain
Chief Rabbi's Emergency Council Chief Rabbi's Emergency Council
1947 19 mins Silent
Poignant postwar appeal for Britain’s Jewry to support orphaned Jewish children rescued from Europe
Jewish Pensioners' Controversial Pools Win Jewish Pensioners' Controversial Pools Win
News 1975 5 mins Location: Southend-on-Sea
All good pals and jolly good company! A syndicate of Jewish pensioners from Southend celebrate their big win on the football pools.
Just One Kid Just One Kid
Factual TV 1974 54 mins Silent
A Jewish Eastender recalls growing up in poverty in the 1930s and being part of a community now long gone
Mr. Emmanuel Mr. Emmanuel
Drama 1944 97 mins
An elderly Jewish man journeys to Nazi Germany to track down a refugee’s mother in this extraordinary drama
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.
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 Archive’s 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.