Chiswick swimming pool, via BFI National Archives.
I have been doing some work for Film London’s London Screen Archives which involved watching hundreds old home movies, news reels and promotional films made in and about London. Many of these have been donated by families to local archives, others were made by councils or boroughs, or were newsreels acquired by the BFI, such as the above of Chiswick pool in the 1920s. Collectively, they give a glimpse of the past, showing how people lived, what they wore and ate, how they decorated their homes – even how they chose to behave in front of the camera.
Some of these films will be screened in Film London‘s new Kinovan, a mobile cinema that is travelling to different boroughs showing old footage of life in the area. Home movies are a fascinating and often neglected treasure trove of historical footage, inadvertently revealing so much about the past. I’ve collected some stills from home movies I’ve been watching to post below – and if you have any home movies you wish to donate to the collection, you can do so via The Bigger Picture project.
Berwick Street market, 1960s.
The Golden Egg, 1960s.
Docker tea break, 1960s.
Londoners, 1960s.
Cowboy demonstration, company fete, Dagenham, 1950s.
Lord Mayor’s Show, 1967.
Embankment, 1964.
Odeon Leicester Square, 1960s.
New car, Haringey, 1960s.
London street, Haringey, 1960s.
London in the rain, 1960s.
Christmas party, Becontree, 1960s.
Pint, 1961.
PO Tower, 1965.
Company sack race, Dagenham, 1950s.
Green Lanes, 1960s.
Operating machinery, Dagenham
Company fete, Dagenham, 1950s
