Edgar Anstey

Scottish Television's film on the 40th Edinburgh International Film Festival in 1986, starring Robbie Coltrane (a former EIFF chauffeur) and featuring interviews with Bill Forsyth, Samuel Fuller and Barry Norman, among many others.

Newsreels from the '30s constitute the bulk of this fascinating documentary, clearly illustrating that the public was fed an extremely biased view of events: straight propaganda, the stricture to provide entertainment, and the attempt to be objective all contributing to this. Lewis and producer Elizabeth Taylor-Mead have constructed their argument well, but it is Jonathan Dimbleby's brief comments towards the end that contain the crucial lesson: forty years on, the same forces work to distort our view of Northern Ireland. The film only indicates this to be the case, but it is precise and coherent enough to make the point with considerable force.

Avant-garde appeal on behalf of and made by the adventurous leftist London cinema, The Other Cinema, using the facilities provided by the BBC community programme unit.

The problem of slum dwellings in the 1930s.

The problem of slum dwellings in the 1930s.

Comprising train and track footage quickly shot just before a heavy winter's snowfall was melting, the multi-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. Tough-as-boots workers struggling to keep the line clear are counterpointed with passengers' buffet-car comforts.

Time lapse photography shows the swarm of commuters at London Waterloo station racing about at top speed.

Packaged holidays for the elderly: a party of 'senior citizens' (60-plus) on a holiday which includes a special train from Newcastle to the Isle of Wight.

In the Hull Docks, the steamer S.S. Bravo arrives from Gothenburg with cargo.

Two keen hostelling youths, Ken Moody and Brian Cotton, convert a boat in their native Selby into a youth hostel, and get the chance to air their views on the direction that hostelling is taking in the mid-1960s.

A look at the transport system in the South Wales Valleys and how it effects peoples livelihoods and everyday lives.

An Englishman has just got off the train at St. Enoch Station and is asking a cab driver to show him around Glasgow. Naturally, the cab driver is happy to oblige and the visitor gets to see the City first hand.

Captures the consumption of gas by various large kitchens in London, during a particular dinner hour.

A documentary looking at a day at Croydon Airport south of London.

A British documentary on tunneling if a building falls in ruins.

Coach passengers give their reasons for preferring that type of transport. A group of ramblers visit the Welsh mountains; an angler and his family spend a peaceful day by a country river; a family goes to the seaside; some students visit Oxford during a music festival.

A film about one of the most responsible and professional jobs on British Railways. Practical work in shop and signal box, on gantry and trackside, coupled with instruction in mechanics, electricity, electronics and draughtsmanship, lead the apprentice intro the intricacies of design, the excitement of research and experiment, and the intense satisfaction of being in on a big changeover from old-style semaphore signalling to a new coloured light system.

Donald Houston plays a Welshman who tells the story of what it's like to live in small town Wales and how the train service helps.

Intended as a sales tool for manufacturers, this short film details the production installation and maintenance for long welded track in use on British Railways.

Two visitors enjoying Scotland, an enthusiastic but inexperienced golfer improving on the world's greatest courses; his wife exploring spectacular places visited by the first known lady golfer in history - Mary, Queen of Scots. The commentary of Scot's actor Andrew Crawford links romantic past with sporting present in a film which captures the flavour of the country and its national game.

Sets out to persuade businesspeople of the advantages of going from city to city by train. How it gives them time to relax, work or sleep in comfort.

An illustrated lecture given by Dr. Beeching on the development and improvement of Britain's major railway trunk routes. Offers a forecast of the requirements of 1984 outlined in his 1964 report.

A cautionary tale of a typical holiday suitcase. Crammed beyond its capacity, imperfectly fastened, inadequately and confusedly labelled, the railways transport it from station to station, seeking its true abode. Finally, one of its owners comes to the nightmare tribunal where those who maltreat their luggage are dealt with. Did it happen? Was it a dream? Be warned. See this film. Avoid making yours 'a desperate case'.

A cheerful and very colourful pastiche of live action with combined graphics set to the music of Muir Mathieson. This film typifies the image British Rail was keen to transmit during the early part of the 1970s. It marked the start of the age of the train, when 100mph running became standard and travelling inter-city took you from 'city to city - heart to heart'.

The film version of Dr. Richard Beeching's plan for the re-shaping of British Railways, showing some of the problems involved, the research necessary, and the answers that were produced.

The film version of Dr. Richard Beeching's plan for the re-shaping of British Railways, showing some of the problems involved, the research necessary, and the answers that were produced.

The film version of Dr. Richard Beeching's plan for the re-shaping of British Railways, showing some of the problems involved, the research necessary, and the answers that were produced.