London Street Scenes c.1920s

1920s | 3 mins

This 1920s actuality film offers proof, if it were needed, that central London has never been congestion-free. Private horse-drawn cabs nestle alongside company vans, open-top double-deckers and rag-and-bone carts. Vintage buses skim past policemen who appear to be the only form of traffic control.

In places some nifty superimposition offers a kaleidoscope of images against the backdrop of St. Paul's, Big Ben and a host of other landmarks. While this is certainly a celebration of the city, the real stars are the pedestrians, who circumnavigate delivery vehicles, cyclists, horses and taxis with good humour and lots of style. By contrast, the early morning inspection of a crowd-free Regent Street recalls the grace and splendour of John Nash's Regency London.