This film is part of Free
Building a British Railway - Constructing the Locomotive
Magnificent glimpses inside Crewe’s famous works - where a steam loco takes shape before our eyes
Overview
Roll up, roll up! Step inside Crewe's famous railway works to witness a steam locomotive taking shape before your eyes. In 1905, actuality images of production processes, normally hidden from view, were still a novelty for cinema audiences. Revisited today they are invaluable artefacts of early filmmaking, building blocks for what later became documentary film. They're also precious industrial records – in this case, of the vanished world of early twentieth century railways.
In 1905 the pioneering Charles Urban Trading Company, with the cooperation of the London and North Western Railway, produced two series of 'interest films', released episodically under the umbrella title Building a British Railway. Sadly, this large fragment is all that is known to have survived of either series: a tantalising glimpse at what has been lost, what remains is magnificent all the same. As well as the precious visual documentation of several later stages in the construction of a railway engine (followed by it being run out of the shed), there is the striking spectacle of an engine being coaled by conveyor belt.
Related
Enginemen Enginemen
Documentary 1959 17 mins
This poetic Free Cinema documentary, filmed near Manchester, reflects on the changing world of the engineman.
Severn Valley Railway Severn Valley Railway
News 1976 7 mins Location: Bridgnorth
Is Chris Tarrant up to shovelling a ton and a half of coal to keep the fire burning and the steam up between Bridgnorth and Bewdley?
Repairing Track After Mustard Gas Attack Repairing Track After Mustard Gas Attack
Industry sponsored film 1939 45 mins Silent Location: Northampton
With the horrific effects of gas warfare still fresh in the memory, rubberised men – like extras from a 1950s British sci fi movie – prepare for more, with 1940s attention to detail.
Railways - Derelict and Preserved Railways - Derelict and Preserved
Amateur film 1975 33 mins Silent Location: Rainhill
Come and see Rocket 150, and visit a selection of railway locations, past and preserved.
Snowdrift at Bleath Gill Snowdrift at Bleath Gill
Documentary 1955 10 mins Location: Bleathgill
Snowploughs are readied to rescue a snowbound train - in one of the most popular of all British Transport Films.
They Take the High Road They Take the High Road
Industry sponsored film 1960 24 mins
Telling the story of four British Road Services drivers who lived and worked together for two years.
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.