Petticoat Lane (1903)

This fascinating film provides an authentic view of London's East End from over a hundred years ago. Flat-capped men flow in a Sunday morning tide down Middlesex Street - better known by its unofficial name, Petticoat Lane - just as they have for generations.

This most Cockney of London markets caters to the second clothes trade: at the time when this film was made, the market was dominated by the East End street sellers and the Jewish rag trade (almost all the names on the shop fronts are Jewish). As the camera pans across the market, we see the traders raised above the general level, barking at the crowd. The few women in the picture are stall-holders, selling patched-up trousers and restored boots, while a nearby card sharp tempts the punters. (Bryony Dixon)

You can watch over 1400 other complete films and TV programmes from the BFI National Archive free of charge in the Mediatheque at BFI Southbank, London and at the new QUAD centre for art and film in Derby - http://www.bfi.org.uk/mediatheque http://www.derbyquad.co.uk/bfi-mediatheque

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• BFI
• Edwardian
• London
• East
• End
• Shoreditch
• Whitechapel
• Spitalfields
• E1
• Market
• Hats
• Jewish

[fleming1972]

They keep staring like they haven't seen a movie camera before.

Oh wait......

[ogicabp4u]

@benisnowsober

1900 - "Good day sir!"

2000 - "Wot u lookin at?"

[kiarita5074]

jebane brytole he he wesniaki

[menacinghat]

@COOLSAMMYJO

they all got kicked out for being lame

[kenns9]

@menacinghat

true..if they survived the war!

[menacinghat]

@kenns9

their probably all dead now to be honest. living over 100 is incredibly rare

[crewzaa]

The older and young guys always dragged on their lapels.And in these earlier images a lot of younger guys struck the pose,one arm on hip legs apart.,and in some of the images guys putting their thumbs to their noses at the Camera and shaking their finger was called tiddalin the wink.;)

[spelqueka]

@Edgey1988

It was 50,000 actually! Don't forget Africans were forced to come here against their will in the 17th and 18th centuries! Oh, and there were never such things as Romans, Saxons, Normans or Vikings were there? Don't get me wrong, I am against opening the gates and letting the whole world in, but you can't pretend it is a new thing!

[Edgey1988]

@spelqueka Oh yeah cos the hugonoets came in massive numbers didn't they!!?

40,000 came in total and a lot of them were only here temporarily, at a time when the population was about 8 million. Unless the hugonoets were all nymphomaniacs then I can't see how they had significant impact on the population.

[spelqueka]

@Edgey1988

Haven't you ever heard of the Hugonoets then?

[chanctonbury63]

@Edgey1988 Chinese and Russian too. Pick up a book sometime.

[Edgey1988]

@chanctonbury63 ''Full of them''? Where have you got that information from? Were there ever any English people in the east end?