CLIPS & FOOTAGE

Happy New Year! Let's all match our scarves and blouses

2012-01-05T08:40:00.000-08:00

It's a new year and some readers may be looking to cultivate a more polished, chicer look to reveal in the spring. With that in mind here's a style tip straight from 1946, an exciting time for fashion when WWII austerity measures had ended and luxurious fabrics, colour and patterns were back in a riot of monkey prints and silk scarves which exactly matched the blouses underneath...

Little Gems:1960s Denmark

2011-12-15T05:30:00.000-08:00

Ok so it's not very seasonal-appropriate but this is a current favourite in the office, a travelogue of Denmark in the 1960s which departs from the usual tourist sights to show us some unexpected and rather wonderful things:

The first thing to catch our eye was this scene at the races. I love the sheer scale of the hats and the hairdos, there's an element on humour there but also an undercurrent of competition, who can get the biggest hair, it's all a bit Marie Antoinette. The lady at the end wins hands down:

And here's some apartment blocks, the mixture of the modern architecture plus the flashes of colour is set off beautifully by the ivy which swathes the building:

This clip takes us into a Danish retirement home, it looks like a hoot; relaxing in chic surroundings where the days are spent playing pool and telling each other jokes:

And as a finishing touch there are these gentleman chimney sweeps. In their top hats they look rather like upper class Victorian cat burglars:

Take a trip to the moon, in colour!

2011-12-09T03:49:00.000-08:00

If you thought Georges Melies 1902 classic trick film ‘A Trip to the Moon’ couldn’t get any better, check out Serge Bromberg’s release of a meticulously restored version of the original hand-painted colour film.

Clips & Footage represent Serge’s vast collection of film treasures (Lobster Films) in the UK and we couldn’t be prouder! 18 years in the making, the original colour print has been brought back to life by Serge and his award-winning restoration team.

This piece of cinematic history premiered at the Cannes opening ceremony in May this year and is coming to the UK on Monday at a special screening at the Institute Francais attended by French electronic duo AIR who have provided the soundtrack.

http://www.institut-francais.org.uk/films/tribute-to-georges-melies

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T03:03:00.000-08:00

To celebrate we bring you turkeys dressed as dandies and fairytale characters:

Self Defence for Women: Some Common Sense Precautions

2011-11-23T08:09:00.000-08:00

This 60s self defence film is interesting in its balance between practical/ empowering tips for women, such as how to fight off a male attacker:

And scaremongering, a personal favourite tip being 'don't get into a lift if it's going down':

1960s Chicago: Marina City

2011-11-11T05:26:00.000-08:00

The twin towers of Marina City, downtown Chicago were completed in 1964. Construction of the complex comprising of apartments, car parks, shops and restuarants was funded by the unions who were concerned by 'white flight' of middle class Americans to the suburbs, leaving inner city areas populated by poor immigrants and African Americans. By offering everything residents could want in a small area they aimed to provide a viable alternative to the convenience of suburban settlements, along with the outdoor space of the large balconies.

The architect Bertrand Goldberg studied under modernist Mies van der Rohe, and whilst he follows many of the principles of modernist architecture in the simplicity of the concrete structure his design is a departure from the straight lines and cubist spaces favoured by many of his contemporaries. The cylindrical shape of the concrete towers was ostensibly chosen because it was better suited to the weather of the 'windy city', deflecting the pressure caused by strong winds. As you can see from the floor plans (towards the start of the clip), the petal-shaped apartments within the tower are remarkable in that they feature almost no right angles.

1960s Chicago: Inside the Merchandise Mart

2011-11-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

On this economically gloomy day we're taking a look back to the heyday of consumerism. The somber care taken by the staff and the slow reverence of the shoppers make this 1960s Chicago department store appear more like a museum than a shop:

RIP it Up... Amazing Ari Up dies one year ago today.

2011-10-20T04:46:00.000-07:00

Warning: This clip may contain traces of bad words

For some well-loved Slits history check out this article by Dread Zed:

Skank Blog Bologna: Don’t Create… Don’t Rebel…

New In: 1970s Public Information Film, 'We all drink, what's wrong with us?'

2011-09-23T08:31:00.000-07:00

Here are some clips from a wonderful new addition to our collection of public information films. Dating from the 1970s it warns of the dangers of drinking, and features a teenage party and another rather brilliant argument between an adolescent and his hard liquor-pushing friends:

He clearly has the right idea though, as the video shows, it's a slippery slope to this:

'Yeah but she wouldn't wear that jumper to a funeral...'

2011-09-23T05:26:00.000-07:00

The burning question of the day is: what does one wear to the funeral of Princess Diana? Taken from rushes filmed amongst the crowds of mourners who gathered for Diana's funeral in London, it's one of the most absurd arguments we've ever seen:

I'd just like to let out a yell...

2011-09-16T08:41:00.000-07:00

Let's all celebrate Friday with a bit of (totally spontaneous) yelling:

1950 Nylon Stockings Catwalk Show

2011-08-19T07:46:00.000-07:00

Some 50s fashion inspiration for Friday afternoon, I'm thinking the nylons with the crystal studded heels:

1950s San Francisco Teen Street Gangs

2011-08-10T06:02:00.000-07:00

Over the past few days we've been shocked to see mass violence and looting erupt over London and the rest of England. The evidence of countless YouTube videos and press reports suggests that the majority of those involved in the rioting are teenagers or even younger. In the press, questions are being raised about how our society's failings have created this disenfranchised young underclass, driven to gang violence by boredom and a lack of prospects. It's not a new issue and not one restricted to the UK by any means. Here's some footage of 1950s San Francisco street gangs, the hairstyles may have changed but the youthful disrespect for the older generation and the aggresive swagger of the pack mentality are there:

Little Gems: The Mountbatten family 1930s home movies

2011-07-20T02:03:00.000-07:00

Whilst we’re generally very happy with our lot here at Clips & Footage, there are certain parts of the collection which show such ridiculously glamorous and fun lifestyles that we wish we could wind back the clock and be there. The biggest culprit for this is the Mountbatten home movies from the 1930s, centred around the exploits of handsome Lord Louis (Dickie) Mountbatten and his wife Edwina. As the original jet set elite, they travelled all over the world capturing their trips to destinations such as Australia, Russia and Egypt as a remarkable video diary. The films show their lives as an endless round of planes, parties, silver service picnins and fast cars, accompanied by a coterie of Royalty and celebrities such as Charlie Chaplin and Vivien Leigh:

That said, behind the high life there are some chilling hints that their carefree world was on the brink of drastic change. The rise of fascism in the UK is alluded to as Oswald Moseley makes an appearance at a garden party, at the other end of the political spectrum, during a visit to 1930s Russia they are careful to document the extreme poverty and snaking breadlines of the Communist reigime. There is also footage of a visit to a Warsaw Jewish market in the 1930s just before the Nazi pogroms, one shot shows an old man standing by a pile of shoes, foreshadowing similar images of Jewish people’s posessions taken at the concentration camps in a few years time.

One post is nowhere near enough to do this collection justice, so look out for more gems from the Mountbatten Collection coming soon to the blog.

Subcultural Roundup: Pt2.2 Jack's Tour of London 1977-1980

2011-07-18T08:21:00.000-07:00

Following on from the last post, we've also recently taken on amateur 8mm footage shot by Canadian Jack Kiljan during his visits to London between 1977-1980. Jack was an enthusiast for all aspects of UK culture from theatre and films to punk rock. Much of his films focus on London's Soho and Piccadilly Circus where he shot graffiti, newspaper headlines, band posters and signs for films and shows with an almost obsessive attention to detail creating a cultural timecapsule back to the days of seedy Soho, The Great Rock n Roll Swindle, The Slits and The Empire Strikes Back:

Whilst in London, Jack also visited and filmed various gigs at venues such as the Marquee Club in Soho, the Roundhouse and also larger music festivals including the Chelmsford Punk Rock Festival and Rock Against Racism in the late 1970s. Positioned in the the audience, Jack captured performances from famous artists like The Boomtown Rats and Elvis Costello, plus more underground acts such as Slaughter and the Dogs. His eye was also often drawn to the punks he encountered at gigs and on central london streets, giving a view of the subculture which veers between the familiarity afforded by being a fellow punk rock fan and the strange detachment of experiencing first hand a foreign culture that he'd, until then, only been able to admire from afar:

As with Captain Zip, the amateur quality of the footage not only lends it an intimacy but also fits well the with unpolished punk aesthetic. Having been locked away in film cans for years, this footage has never been broadcast, giving viewers a new glimpse of an era in UK culture which holds enduring appeal to programme makers and music fans alike.

Subcultural Round-up: Pt. 2.1 UK Punks Zipped Up

2011-07-07T05:47:00.000-07:00

We've recently been lucky enough to take on not one but three new collections of UK punk footage from the 1970s and 80s, making Clips & Footage the place to find punk clips.

First up is the remarkable collection of Captain Zip. As an amateur filmmaker and punk himself, Zip was much more accepted by the punks than professional film crews or tourists who were often greeted with suspicion or open hostility. Zip's footage gives an intimate glimpse of the punks and punkettes as they clown for the camera, showing that their anti-establishment rage was measured by youthful playfulness (look out for the punkette eating a very non-punk ice lolly). Zip also followed the punks off the street visiting shops and squat parties with his 8mm camera.

This collection is ideal for those interested in punk fashion. It includes a shot of the grande-dame of punk herself Vivienne Westwood wandering along the King's Road and shows that punks went further than safety pins and zips in their search for extreme fashion accessories (check out the unique earring sported by punkette Tampax).

New in - HD footage of 1936 Paris

2011-06-01T07:31:00.000-07:00

We're very excited to have some stunning new footage showing 1936 Paris, just transferred from 35mm neg to HD. Although it's a compressed DVD version uploaded to YouTube, it's easy to tell that the master quality will be remarkable. It shows old Paris pre WWII in all it's shimmering bourgeois glory, typified by these shots of a Champs Elysees pavement cafe:

And ladies in their furs shopping for flowers :

My favourite clip is this panoramic view of the city from Notre Dame Cathedral in the company of the grotesques:

The full film will viewable online later this week at our TFA collection website http://travelfilmclipsandfootage.com/, follow the link for a wonderful selection of travel films all over the world dating from 1900s - 1970s.

Subcultural Round-up: Pt. 1 Graffiti Rock, hip hop dance moves

2011-05-27T09:26:00.000-07:00

As well as having footage to cover major trends in popular culture in the 20th Century, we also have some brilliant rare footage of subcultures bubbling under the surface. A favourite here is the 80s hip hop collection which includes some of the earliest b-boy films featuring the New York City Breakers, no contest for the best move:

We also have Graffiti Rock, the 1984 pilot of a show created by hip hop pioneer Michael Holman featuring guests such as Run DMC and a hot studio audience (including, oddly, Vincent Gallo see if you can spot him) of body popping dancers who had the robot down:

Only one episode was ever made but it still continues to be influential to hip hop fans today, including Gnarls Barkley who pastiched the show in the video for their single ‘Run’ featuring (the not so ‘fresh’) Justin Timberlake as Michael Holman:

Clips & Footage Win at Focal Awards 2011

2011-05-20T08:35:00.000-07:00

We are delighted to announce that Clips & Footage was voted

International Footage Library of the Year

at the Focal International Awards held on 11th May 2011.

And our own Jenny Coan was voted

International Footage Library Employee of the Year

Everyone at Clips & Footage is absolutely thrilled to have won two such prestigious awards and we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all those who voted for us.

This Chap's a Wizard!

2011-04-15T05:54:00.000-07:00

If the 3 days of sunshine last week put you in the holiday spirit then just take a look at this, a 1950s cruise on the Orcades liner touted as 'not just a ship, but a friend', it's making us dream of summer holidays on the high seas..

The ship has one very big draw: a barman with serious skills who could easily rival Tom Cruise in Cocktail. You may say this shows that boozed up Brits abroad are far from a modern phenomenon, we say chin chin!

Gadgets a go-go, part 2: 1940 robot butler

2011-04-14T07:12:00.000-07:00

Whilst technology has moved on leaps and bounds over the past century, with countless labour-saving devices cutting down the hours spent toiling over housework, we're still without the holy grail of gadgets... the robot butler! Yes the robot butler is still as much a dream to us now as it was in 1940 when this clip was made, how we've managed to live without Roll-Oh to cut our ribbons and hoover up any rose petals that happen to fall on the floor I will never know.

He may be a little bit cumbersome, have a sinister voice and move at least 3 times slower than the average person but we rather love this robot butler and wouldn't mind getting one for the office. The only drawback is his candle-lighter which looks suspiciously like a flame thrower, not sure if that would pass health and safety.

Tribute to Elizabeth Taylor

2011-03-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

After hearing today's sad news we wanted to share a few select clips of the most glamorous of film stars.

She established herself in her performance of a young girl who dreamed of taking her beloved horse to the Grand National.

The epitome of glamour and wealth, Elizabeth Taylor was regarded as one of the most beautiful women in the world.

She was seen as one of the few remaining links to the golden age of Hollywood and will be remembered as one of the 20th century's biggest movie stars.

Gadgets a go-go!

2011-03-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

Researching the 100 greatest gadgets has thrown up some rather wonderful clips showing early imaginings of inventions we have now come to know and love. First up is a 1950 incarnation of the synth, 'this is music with a strictly electronic beat!'

Tribute to Jane Russell

2011-03-04T08:25:00.000-08:00

Following the sad news of Jane Russell's death on Monday we're paying tribute to the Hollywood legend by revisiting her 1943 movie debut as curvaceous Rio in 'The Outlaw'.

And her most iconic role opposite Marilyn Monroe in 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'. We loved Russell as Dorothy, the grown-up foil to Monroe's breathless ditzy Lorelei and her number 'Ain't There Anyone Here For Love ' has to be the favourite Russell moment here at Clips Towers.

Be Our Valentine! (or maybe not)

2011-02-14T10:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's to you all! For those getting into the spirit of things we have the trailer for 'Love Me Tender' featuring 'Mr Rock'n'Roll himself' Elvis, my dream date!

And for those not getting into the spirit of things there's 'Mad Love' featuring Peter Lorre at his sinister best as a man whose love was a 'pitiful, hopeless, madness'. So to all those who haven't got any cards maybe it was a lucky escape!

The King's Speech

2011-01-31T02:00:00.000-08:00

Inspired by Colin Firth's tour de force performance as George VI in The King's Speech we've decided to delve into the archive to find some vintage clips of the man himself. Here we see the pomp and ceremony of his coronation (plus a glimpse his brother Edward and new bride Wallis Simpson):

In this clip, filmed almost a decade later in 1946, we see the King giving a speech during a visit to Leicester. The footage, shot in lovely 1940s colour, captures the excitement of post-war Brits as they greeted their King. Look out for the POV shots from a car in the royal convoy showing crowded streets of people clutching Union Jacks and the children getting into a flag-waving frenzy at the end:

New Year: New Hairdo

2011-01-07T05:36:00.000-08:00

The 1940s 'victory roll' is being touted as the new hairdo for 2011. This version of the french roll is now gracing the heads of everyone from starlets to Shoreditch girls.

But where did the name of the style come from? As this clip featuring the beautiful Verionica Lake (known for her glossy long hairstyle) shows, it was safety not style which motivated the uptake of the roll in the 1940s. With women off to work in factories for the war effort, wearing hair up meant it was less likely to get caught in the machines, as the voiceover warns 'danger too lurks in the hang-down hairdo':

Little Gems:1920s flappers dance the Charleston in London park

2010-12-03T07:51:00.000-08:00

We stumbled across this fabulous clip today, it's a true gem! Loving the glamour of these 1920s ladies visiting London sporting fur-trimmed coats and lapdogs. The way they break out into the Charleston in the park epitomises the excitement and energy of the roaring 20s. There are also some fascinating fleeting glimpses of Maida Vale tube station and 1920s London streets.

Sci fi choice: Mars Attacks!

2010-12-03T05:49:00.000-08:00

A very popular part of the Clips & Footage library is our collection of sci fi b-movies and trailers. These imaginings of alternate realities provide a constant source of inspiration for programme makers. Following on from the wonderfully creative 'Killer Shrews' a few weeks ago, this week we're looking at filmic portrayals of aliens in vintage sci fi films.

First up, a clip from 1925 feature film 'Aelita'. Aelita was one of the first full-length features about space travel, and one of the best. The angular, robotic martian costumes have influenced many subsequent filmmakers (and bands such as Daft Punk), and their flashing light weapons create a stunningly futuristic effect.

Next, the trailer for 1953 film 'Invaders from Mars'. Imagine you're a small child and a UFO full of terrifying aliens lands in your back garden. I think I'd be diving straight for my wardrobe but little David shouts 'gee wizz' and gets straight out there with his telescope to get a good look. The aliens themselves are, for the most part, lumbering men dressed in green rubber bodysuits (a look that was set to play out in many subsequent sci fi films), bar the leader, whose Medusa-esque disembodied head suspended in a perspex box is rather more disturbing:

And finally for a kitsch b-movie favourite from our libray and a warning that green face paint, tights and a collander hat do not a Martian make. However, the fact that they're off to get Santa Claus gives an idea of the tone of the film, it's one of our festive guilty pleasures!

The Pygmies' Fight for Survival

2010-11-22T03:34:00.000-08:00

You probably realise by now that we at Clips & Footage are pretty passionate about our work. We recently got very excited when we came across some early footage of a pygmy tribe in our Lobster Collection. The footage is colour, probably hand-tinted, and is dated 1925.

When we then stumbled across some footage of pygmies in the Belgian Congo in 1954 (see the clip below), we wanted to know more about these indigenous people. What we discoved is shocking. Displacement and discrimination against these people, numbering just half a million, is just the beginning of an appalling story of disenfranchisement and brutality.

Although there are distinct groups of pygmies across central Africa including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Uganda and Cameroon with different languages, they are all fundamentally hunter-gatherers with a spiritual and cultural connection to the rainforest. Conservation projects such as the mountain gorillas in Rwanda and the expansion of industries like logging and mining have led to the displacement of these communities resulting in extreme poverty and ill-health.

How we can help:

www.survivalinternational.org/actnow/writealetter/pygmies

www.coffeerwanda.com/
From the sale of one bag of coffee, Coffee Rwanda can provide: 3 pairs of shoes for pygmy children; or health insurance in Rwanda for 2 people for 1 year; or nutritional support for one child with malnutrition for 3 months; or a shovel to dig farming terraces to increase food production in the village.

http://www.pygmysurvival.org/

CLIP FROM 05001

Trailer Choice: Not such a shrewd move…

2010-10-19T02:01:00.000-07:00

‘See the cruellest man-killers ever photographed’ read the graphics on the trailer for ‘The Killer Shrews’ (1959). What could these fearsome beasts be, one wonders, is it sharks maybe, or bears? No, it’s dogs wrapped in hearth rugs of course! We love a b-movie monster here at Clips & Footage and the killer shrews are some of the best.

The premise: on a remote island a mad scientist attempts to cure world hunger by creating half-size humans, his experiments have unfortunate side effect of producing gigantic shrews with a ravenous appetite. To make matters worse, when these shrews devour the rat poison meant to kill them it instead gives them a venomous bite. ‘Your flesh will crawl at their terrifying nearness’ the voiceover says, or you may just laugh at the unconvincing disguise the dogs are wearing. Either way, it’s brilliant schlock horror not to be missed.

Mad For Mad Men...

2010-10-12T06:36:00.000-07:00

Why do we all love Mad Men? We can't be nostalgic about the chain smoking, casual chauvinism and racism that were big fixtures of the early 60s so could the secret of the success of this cult TV series be the sheer unbridled optimism of that decade in which the American Dream was writ large? For the first time in history a glamorous lifestyle was not confined to the rich: mass production meant mass consumption. Along with the cult of the consumer, new technologies and materials were finding their way into the home and design took centre stage. It is this aesthetic that Mad Men captures so absolutely. The following clip from The American Look (1958) shows how advertising made domestic appliances cool.

The authentic visual style of Mad Men is not confined to the hairstyles, clothes and furniture used on set but extends to the cinematography which has abandoned the intense, hand-held shooting style of contemporary dramas for the elegant, considered classicism of the dolly shot.This clip from a General Motors ad from 1960 shows how high production values saturated commercials made at the time.

Fundamentally, Mad Men is not only gorgeous, well-made and authentic but is cool in a grown-up sexy way that is personified by characters like Christina Hendricks and Roger Sterling.

Psycho killer que est-ce que ce est? Or why we don't like shower curtains

2010-10-12T05:09:00.000-07:00

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the release of Hitchcock's classic film Psycho. Like any film directed by Hitchcock, the promo he produced to trail Psycho is full of in-jokes and recurring themes and devices. In the promo Hitchcock takes us on a tongue-in-cheek guided tour of the Bates Motel accompanied by his trademark jaunty music. This clip shows the mother's bedroom which is, as Hitchcock remarks, "still beautifully preserved".

He then takes us to the top of the staircase where the private detective played by Martin Balsam is murdered. Staircases recur in many of Hitchcock's films. In Vertigo, for example, the stairs up the church bell tower are an important feature in the film while Suspicion includes a scene where Cary Grant slowly, menacingly ascends a staircase. Birds, another of Hitchock's favourite devices, feature in the Psycho promo in the form of taxidermy with which the Anthony Perkins character surrounds himself.

In the bright light of the fateful motel bathroom, Hitchcock teasingly creates a shadow of himself - another of his famous and playful trademarks.Finally, Hitchcock shows opens the lid of the toilet where "an important clue was found". The censors wanted to cut the scene in the film in which Janet Leigh flushes the loo finding it shocking, and impish Hitchcock couldn't resist drawing attention to it in the promo.

A State of Independence

2010-10-11T09:21:00.000-07:00

Fifty years ago the political map of Africa was changing fast with several countries such as the Ivory Coast, Mali and Ghana attaining independence. Just forty years before, a handful of developed countries in the west controlled almost 700 million people in overseas colonies including Africa. Here a colonial foreman oversees the work of the "trained natives" in Kenya.

But dissatisfaction with their colonial masters was growing, particularly in Kenya. The Mau Mau uprising took place between 1952 and 1960 when the incumbent British governers attempted to squash a rebellion by an anti-colonial political faction called 'Mau Mau'. This action inspired many other African nations to fight for independence. This rare clip shows a British colonial couple showing off what was an essential accessory for them in Kenya c1954.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous country and its third largest economy, was granted independence in October 1960. While the Queen remained as Head of State and the Commonwealth, Nigeria was handed power to establish and run its own defence, fiscal and diplomatic infrastructure. Nigeria's independence was greeted with great optimism given its rich mineral deposits and oil and gas reserves. Here is some footage of Nigeria's independence celebrations.

Although some African countries made a relatively straightforward transition to independence, the Belgians were criticized at the time for their ill-conceived exit strategy from the Congo which left the country in a state of chaos. The following newsreel clip shows the terrifying conclusion for Patrice Lumumba, the Congo's first Prime Minister, as the country descended into civil war.

I Spy a Little Gem:1920s Monocles for Ladies

2010-09-28T06:56:00.000-07:00

Now I’m not knocking glasses, beacause it must be said that all the team at Clips & Footage (not being blessed with 20-20 vision) are required to wear them once in a while. However, with the armies of Hoxtonites taking up lensless glasses as a geek-chic fashion accessory, I began to wonder what the next trend would be in eyewear. The answer may lie in this rather wonderful clip, a favourite with us in the office:

: Yes it’s monocles! The dandy’s favourite since the early 19^th century, they were adopted by forward thinking women (particularly in ‘stylish lesbian circles’) in the 1920s as the fashionable new accessory. They haven’t been around for a while which, by the logic of fashion, means they’re surely scheduled for a comeback. And as this clip proves that there is a monocle for every personality, including tortoiseshell for the ‘haughty Miss’.

Trends: Blonde Ambition

2010-09-21T02:59:00.001-07:00

It could be because curves are coming back into fashion (Joan from Mad Men being case in point), or that the tolling bell of austerity Britain is bringing a newfound nostalgia for the glitz of old Hollywood. Whatever it is, the demand for footage of Marilyn Monroe is greater than ever this month.

Here at Clips & Footage Marilyn has always been our Number One star and we have a vast collection of clips of the lady herself from trailers for her blockbuster films such as ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’ to her infamous serenade to President Kennedy to behind the scenes clips from ‘The Prince and the Showgirl’.

We thought we’d celebrate with our favourite clip of Marilyn draped in sequins and fur, shimmying her way through the bank of paparazzi at the premiere for ‘Some Like it Hot’. These 17 seconds of pure glamour are just a dip into the pool of Marilyn Monroe footage we have to offer.

Pack up let’s fly away: Late 1950s London Airport

2010-08-20T04:55:00.001-07:00

As the summer holiday season comes to an end, we thought we’d take a look back to the early days of commercial air travel. It was only in the late 50s that air travel began to open up to a mass market and, as the following clips from this UK airline promo show, the flying experience was about as far from Easyjet as you can get. With not a sniffer dog, snaking queue or tracksuit in sight, it’s Heathrow, but not as we know it:

Opening its doors to the public in 1948, the structure of London Airport (later to become Heathrow) served as a reminder of the war that had recently ended, visitors waiting for flights in ex-military tents and walking on wooden duckboards to board the plane. It was not until 1955 that the airport’s first permanent terminal, ‘The Europa Terminal’ finally opened. The terminal building offered magnificent wallpaper, very helpful staff and (slightly redundant but brilliantly futuristic) televised announcements:

With air travel now affordable, the world was opened up to British holidaymakers like never before. And what did the airlines suggest we do with this freedom? Head to the Costa del Sol, don some fantastically garish 50s beachwear and sip cocktails to your heart’s content, now this is our type of holiday: