The Yorkshire Film Archive collects, preserves, and shows film made in, or about Yorkshire. Our collections are non-fiction, dating from the 1890s to the present day, and providing a rich and visually compelling record of all aspects of lives, cultures, landscape, industries, major events and everyday activities, many of which are available to watch, free of charge, on our website.
This film is part of Free
Railroader
The great Western way of dog eat dog as opponents try to dynamite each other in their pursuit of what really matters in life, railways and money.
From the collection of:
Overview
Taking advantage of the popularity of all things Western among British kids in 1963, Waddingtons turn away from the usual cowboy stuff to the excitement of cut-throat railroad companies competing for lucrative routes - and clearing Native Americans, and the buffalo, off their lands in the process. In this board game players throw dice to build and move along a railroad, using smoke signals to avoid the usual ambushes by outlaws and roaming, “bands of hostile Indians.”
It is hard not to think that the cowpoke type with yee-haw accent that fronts this advert wasn’t inspired by the veteran character actor Walter Brennan, who starred in ‘How the West Was Won’ the year before Railroader appeared in the shops. The railroad, “a race in the wild west, to pioneer the first railroad from Junction City to Buffalo Creek,” may have been based on the Kansas Pacific Railway, which reached Junction City in 1865, employing William Cody (aka "Buffalo Bill") to shoot buffalo on the hunting grounds of Native American tribes to feed the construction gangs. The line led to the famous Golden spike event in Utah in 1869, linking of the Union Pacific with the Central Pacific Railroad.
Related
Spy Ring Spy Ring
1965 1 mins Location: Leeds
There is never a dull moment in this International Spy Game of foreign spies competing to trick their way into sixteen different embassies.
Yorkshire Post: Sports Fan Yorkshire Post: Sports Fan
1973 1 mins Location: Leeds
An Olympic Games hopeful bundles into a Leeds newsagents, only to be met by a new shopkeeper from The Smoke, bemused by the Yorkshire Post.
The Big Country The Big Country
Promotional 1970 16 mins Location: Newcastle upon Tyne
Tuning into the biggest consumer market for television advertising in Britain with Trident TV.
Moorhouse Lemon Cheese Moorhouse Lemon Cheese
1966 1 mins Location: Leeds
Butter, eggs, and lemons, what else could better evoke the healthiness of the countryside than this delicious traditional desert topping?
Yorkshire Post Advert Yorkshire Post Advert
1970 0 mins Location: Leeds
Headlining with the expulsion of South Africa from the Olympics in 1970, the Yorkshire Post sells itself as much more than a local paper.
Future Scientists Future Scientists
1966 1 mins Location: Leeds
With the subatomic world getting ever smaller, Waddingtons recognised that a microscope was just what was needed “for the man of the future.”
Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.
Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.
Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.
Police Story: Panel Discussion Police Story: Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 24 mins
Panel discussion on Jackie Chan's 1985 action classic Police Story, with Chase Armitage, Sam Mak and Jadey Duffield.
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.