Listen to Britain (1942) - extract

This extract comes from Humphrey Jennings and Stewart McAllister's 'Listen to Britain'. The film is available to buy on the BFI DVD 'Land of Promise: British Documentary Movement (1930-1950)'. The 4-disc set with 13 hours of re-mastered footage, in deluxe presentation box with 96-page booklet, is available from the BFI for £34.99 at http://www.bfi.org.uk/filmstore

A landmark BFI collection, and the first major retrospective of the documentary film movement during its period of greatest influence. These films - many of which are being made available here for the first time since their original release - capture the spirit and strength, concerns and resolve of Britain and its people before, during and after the Second World War.

These diverse and compelling films are fascinating historical documents, bearing witness to the social and industrial changes of the rapidly changing world. Yet they are also striking in their different approach to the form. Using poetry, dramatic reconstruction, the techniques of modernism and explicit propaganda, the filmmakers found fresh, new ways to get their message across.

You can watch 'Listen to Britain' and over 1000 other complete films and TV programmes from the BFI National Archive free of charge at the new BFI Mediatheque - http://www.bfi.org.uk/mediatheque

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• BFI
• Britain
• 1940s
• Documentary
• WW2
• dancing
• air-raid
• bombers
• planes
• fighting
• war
• soldiers

[kitkat6026]

@astralagosto just to let you know women were dancing with each other because the men were in short supply incase you dont know there was a war on and men were away fighting and dieing,my mum can remember doing this at dances so what has lesbians got to do with it,honestly get ya mind out of the gutter

[DADRENO]

We had a pair of Landgirls lodging with us during the war.

[TheGREATEST95]

it looks like america at the same time or america looks like britian

[mickram23]

Does anyone else think the footage of the dancers is just as spectacular as any modern cgi dominated film. These filmakers were incredible.

[chanctonbury63]

If anyone wanted to dance clockwise there`d be a riot!

[BritsPrerogative]

for the time, this is beautiful

[astralagosto]

@kitkat6026 My mind is not in the gutter. Lesbians are nice people so my mind is not in the gutter. Why didn't you reply to the original poster of the lesbian joke down in the comments sections?????He wrote it last year. It went like Lesbians weren't invented until 1964. You should have replied to him first instead of me. Get a life!!!! Life is not always serious.

[astralagosto]

The lesbians are 1:50. Just to let everyone know because one could never find them at 1:56.

Cheers!!!!!

[dagwood151]

It's a bit different to the wine-bars and discos we have today but whichever era a good time is there to be had.

[terrificly]

I spotted one chap WITHOUT a tie.

How did he get passed the bouncers?

Loved the crack about the lesbians nasilemak2008, the comments on these films are really worth checking out.

Some real gems

[caley956]

Yes, buy it off the BFI website - along with many others.