2010-09-13
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“With specially-composed music by David Gow and no commentary, Overture One-Two-Five was the last complete production to be shot on 35mm film by British Transport Films. It was produced to mark the introduction of the new Inter-City 125 High Speed Train services between Paddington and Bristol.”
(Source: filmstore.bfi.org.uk)
2009-10-01
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Snow, directed by Geoffrey Jones, 1963. From the BFI’s archives.
“Comprising train and track footage quickly shot just before a heavy winter’s snowfall was melting, the award-winning classic that emerged from the cutting-room compresses British Rail’s dedication to blizzard-battling into a thrilling eight-minute montage cut to music.”
Said music is by Daphne Oram, an early British electronic music pioneer, instrumental in founding the Radiophonic Workshop. From the notes to the album Oramics: “The 1963 ‘Snow’ is ingenious, but somehow uncharacteristic. For this, a tape of a Sandy Nelson jazz drumming piece is slowly speeded up according to an accelerando structure.”
Amazing stuff.
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Tea Making Tips from the Empire Tea Bureau, from the BFI’s national archive. So many great moments.
