Inside the Archive articles

Railway 200

Railway 200: In praise of TV’s most famous locomotive

In celebrating trains on screen for the 200th anniversary of Britain’s passenger railways, who could forget a certain tank engine called Thomas, who debuted on television in 1984 and would later become a huge international franchise.

By Elinor Groom

Railway 200: In praise of TV’s most famous locomotive

Rarities of British cinema

Peggy Cummins and her glitzy family melodrama My Daughter Joy

By Josephine Botting

Peggy Cummins and her glitzy family melodrama My Daughter Joy

Object of the week

Object of the week: Cecil Beaton’s costume design for Vivien Leigh as Anna Karenina

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: Cecil Beaton’s costume design for Vivien Leigh as Anna Karenina

Object of the week

Object of the week: Dirk Bogarde’s annotated script for classic blackmail drama Victim

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: Dirk Bogarde’s annotated script for classic blackmail drama Victim

Rarities of British cinema

The White Unicorn: a “tale of babies, boudoirs, lingerie, misunderstanding husbands”

By Josephine Botting

The White Unicorn: a “tale of babies, boudoirs, lingerie, misunderstanding husbands”

Object of the week

Object of the week: Production design for The L-Shaped Room

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: Production design for The L-Shaped Room

Object of the week

Object of the week: A hand-painted still for Michael Powell’s Hebridean romance The Edge of the World

By Alex Prideaux

Object of the week: A hand-painted still for Michael Powell’s Hebridean romance The Edge of the World

Object of the week

Object of the week: The oldest film in our archive

By Bryony Dixon

Object of the week: The oldest film in our archive

Railway 200

Train cels: how British animators have captured the enduring appeal of railway travel

By Jez Stewart

Train cels: how British animators have captured the enduring appeal of railway travel

Object of the week

Object of the week: The Polish poster for Sidney Poitier drama To Sir, with Love

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: The Polish poster for Sidney Poitier drama To Sir, with Love

Object of the week

Object of the week: The toy theatre and cut-out characters created for Laurence Olivier’s Hamlet

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: The toy theatre and cut-out characters created for Laurence Olivier’s Hamlet

Rarities of British cinema

Son of a Stranger: a forgotten British B-movie from the industrious Danziger brothers

By Josephine Botting

Son of a Stranger: a forgotten British B-movie from the industrious Danziger brothers

Object of the week

Object of the week: The milk churns that rewrote film history

By Rebecca Vick

Object of the week: The milk churns that rewrote film history

Object of the week

Object of the week: What’s a Kalamazoo?

By Jez Stewart

Object of the week: What’s a Kalamazoo?

Object of the week

The letter that made Audrey Hepburn a star

By Nathalie Morris

The letter that made Audrey Hepburn a star

Object of the week

Object of the week: production design for the Hindi classic Pakeezah by British sketch artist Ivor Beddoes

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: production design for the Hindi classic Pakeezah by British sketch artist Ivor Beddoes

Features

Phantom rides and kisses in tunnels: the Victorian craze for train films

By Bryony Dixon

Phantom rides and kisses in tunnels: the Victorian craze for train films

Rarities of British cinema

Knives out: remembering Murder in the Family, a forgotten drama from the golden age of detective fiction

By Josephine Botting

Knives out: remembering Murder in the Family, a forgotten drama from the golden age of detective fiction

Object of the week

The unique teaser posters for Ealing’s post-war émigré drama Frieda

By Nathalie Morris

The unique teaser posters for Ealing’s post-war émigré drama Frieda

Railway 200

Railway 200 on screen: British cinema’s great train journey

By Steven Foxon

Railway 200 on screen: British cinema’s great train journey

Object of the week

Behind-the-scenes photos of documentary pioneer Humphrey Jennings filming alt-history drama The Silent Village

By Nathalie Morris

Behind-the-scenes photos of documentary pioneer Humphrey Jennings filming alt-history drama The Silent Village

Object of the week

Henry VIII and His Six Wives: a costume drawing for the 1970s historical epic

By Nathalie Morris

Henry VIII and His Six Wives: a costume drawing for the 1970s historical epic

Object of the week

The 3D printer that helps us recreate vintage film equipment

By Ian Shand

The 3D printer that helps us recreate vintage film equipment

Object of the week

The annotated shooting script for The Third Man, minus the ‘cuckoo clock’ speech

By Nathalie Morris

The annotated shooting script for The Third Man, minus the ‘cuckoo clock’ speech

Object of the week

The shooting script for Sally Potter’s Orlando

By Nathalie Morris

The shooting script for Sally Potter’s Orlando

Object of the week

Camels attending a cinema in Sutton in 1962

By Kay Eldridge and Alex Prideaux

Camels attending a cinema in Sutton in 1962

Object of the week

Alan Whicker’s cue cards for interviewing Sean Connery on You Only Live Twice

By Nathalie Morris

Alan Whicker’s cue cards for interviewing Sean Connery on You Only Live Twice

Object of the week

Object of the week: Harold Brown’s handmade film printer, the Mark IV

By Alex Prideaux

Object of the week: Harold Brown’s handmade film printer, the Mark IV

Object of the week

Object of the week: The colourful lists from Peter Wollen’s notebook

By Nathalie Morris

Object of the week: The colourful lists from Peter Wollen’s notebook

Object of the week

Object of the week: promotional still for the lost silent romcom Swim Girl, Swim

By Eva Norton

Object of the week: promotional still for the lost silent romcom Swim Girl, Swim