At Wessex Film and Sound Archive you can see and hear history, from late Victorian times to the present day, through moving images and sound recordings. The Archive contains over 36,000 film and sound recordings relating to Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, including film and tapes of local TV and radio.
This film is part of Free
Romsey Town Developments
There's watery upheaval in Romsey throughout this remarkable film record from the early 1930s - featuring Saxons, skulls and a helmeted diver.
From the collection of:
Overview
This unusual film captures images not normally seen in home-movies. It starts with a Saxon pageant followed by an outdoor religious service in the grounds of Romsey Abbey. This is followed by a fund-raising carnival for the hospital. There follows, unusually, a long sequence showing the installation of the town's sewer and drainage system. Bones are unearthed, new bridges are constructed and a diver has to work underwater while building the new sewage treatment plant.
Related
Watch for free
Romsey Gazette Romsey Gazette
Amateur film 1931 12 mins Silent Location: Romsey
Social and civic events in Romsey are recorded in this film from the early 1930s - with fascinating views of the town centre as well as a car crash and a devastating house-fire.
Watch for free
Getting it Back: The Story of Cymande - Q&A Getting it Back: The Story of Cymande - Q&A
Inside Film 2024 22 mins
The director of a documentary about British funk pioneers Cymande joins the band at BFI Southbank to talk about the film.
Watch for free
The West Case The West Case
Action and Adventure 1923 28 mins Silent Location: Tilbury
Plotting world domination, Devil Doctor Fu-Manchu steals plans for a new aero-torpedo in this earliest surviving thrill-a-minute serial instalment.
Watch for free
Enter the Scala!!! Enter the Scala!!!
Inside Film 2024 16 mins
Filmmakers Jane Giles and Ali Catterall discuss their documentary Scala!!!, revisiting the legendary and inspirational cinema venue and some of the most notorious films that screened there.
Watch for free
Smith Smith
Charity appeal 1939 10 mins
Long thought lost, this Powell-directed promotional short for a veteran’s charity was only rediscovered in 2003.
Watch for free
An Airman's Letter to His Mother An Airman's Letter to His Mother
Documentary 1941 6 mins
A poignant, stirring letter from a recently deceased pilot to his mother is read by John Gielgud.
Watch for free
The NHS75 Celebration The NHS75 Celebration
Short documentary 2023 3 mins
Former Bristol Poet Laureate, Miles Chambers reads a poem specially commissioned for the 75th anniversary of the NHS.