This film is part of Free
Scabies
Burrows, baths and benzyl benzoate – advice is shared on how to understand and treat the scourge of scabies.
Overview
This production looks at suggested treatment for the growing number of scabies cases in wartime Britain. Detailed instructions including how best to apply medicinal emulsion ensure the viewer is left in no doubt how to treat themselves. Those of a squeamish disposition may not enjoy the microscopic images of the mites, even if the clarity of those images seems impressive for a 1940s film.
Produced by the Ministry of Information on behalf of the Ministry of Health this film addressed concerns that the number of scabies cases was affecting productivity and efficiency in factories and services. Advice such as using a watchmaker’s lens and needle to extract mites, baths and the application of benzyl benzoate emulsion, and treatment of the entire family are included and show the lengths that the government wished to reduce the impact of those tiny but damaging mites. This government film is a public record, preserved and presented by the BFI National Archive on behalf of The National Archives, home to more than 1,000 years of British history.
Related
Activities Pictured at Littleover First Aid Post Activities Pictured at Littleover First Aid Post
Amateur film 1939 16 mins Silent Location: Littleover
An air raid could come at any moment and Derby had to be ready to deal with the casualties. The people of Littleover were so well prepapred they filmed one of their exercises.
Kingsbury: ARP in Sandiacre Kingsbury: ARP in Sandiacre
Home movie 1940 9 mins Silent Location: Sandiacre
From their sandbagged headquarters, the Sandiacre ARP and Red Cross await their call to action.
London Can Take It! London Can Take It!
Documentary 1940 9 mins Location: London
Humphrey Jennings and Harry Watt’s famous GPO film is an enduring example of British self-mythology; a hymn to London’s resilience that helped persuade America to join the war.
Keep Them Safe, Keep Them Happy Keep Them Safe, Keep Them Happy
Charity appeal 1939 2 mins Silent Location: Norwich
Sweet and touching wartime cinema appeal for 300,000 London children spending Christmas far from home.
Bombed Out Bombed Out
Amateur film 1945 9 mins Silent Location: Southwark
Step into the aftermath of a WWII bombing raid in south London in this startling amateur film.
How to Fit a Gas Mask How to Fit a Gas Mask
Public Information Filler 1939 2 mins
Matter-of-fact wartime instruction in how to fit your gas mask efficiently - leaving no margin for error.
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.