Rare footage of village branch line

Theatregoers turned up to a rather chilly Palace Theatre, Newark, for the Christmas edition of Railways Remembered.

Presenter Rob Foxon said we were a particular robust audience, having to turn out again in inclement weather so soon after his Bygone Britain event when the Newark area was on flood alert.

He also apologised on behalf of the theatre management for the coldness in the auditorium, although the heating was on.

The first screening was a 1952 British Transport film, The Elephant Never Forgets, focusing on the last day of trams in London.

Other highlights of the first half were shots taken by an amateur filmmaker on the Isle of Wight and a rare colour film from 1956 called North To Wales, with the narrator taking us on a scenic journey.

There was even a black and white sequence of the Southwell Paddy on a film never shown before.

The train service ran from a branch line from Rolleston to Southwell.

After the interval there was a screening of Today And Every Day made in 1948, produced to show that the railways were nationalised, here to stay and being modernised with new signalling, rolling stock and investment, following the war.

The last film was a short extract from the 1952 colour feature, The Titfield Thunderbolt, showing the opening sequence, outtakes and the final scene of the much-loved picture.

A diverse and entertaining evening. Rob returns with more film footage on May 16 — PAS.