DVD Review: The Lost World of Friese-Greene (BBC, 2005)

This BBC film is a fascinating documentary looking at a series of recently uncovered touring films made in 1925 by Claude Friese-Greene, a British pioneer of film. Colour film, too, using Friese-Greene's own colour system.

The documentary is presented Dan Cruickshank, a very personable and brilliant presenter, known to all regular viewers of UK History and various other satellite/digital stations.

The film shows how Friese-Green set out on his journey by car - a 1920s Vauxhall - from Land's End in Cornwall to John O'Groat's at the tip of Scotland. Dan Cruickshank follows the same route - indeed, in the same make of car - and has early stops at Lamorva beach, Plymouth, Dawlish and a host of other places in the Westcountry. Sadly not Exeter, though Friese-Greene must have passed through.

Cruickshank meets a whole variety of people along the way, many of whom were in the original film itself as children.

What's also interesting is the almost total lack of traffic along the way, in 1925. There were 600,000 cars on the road back then, about 40 times less than now. There were only 1,200 petrol garages and the ones that are shown - always a BP garage (with their Union Flag signboard back then) - are real gems. They were considered any eyesore at the time but would now be seen as antiques.

There is no talking in the original Friese-Greene films, just a series of rather annoying captions, such as the one ridiculing the Welsh accent, during the stop at Cardiff. At Cardiff, the great football team of the time (who finished second in Division One in about 1923, and won the FA Cup beating Arsenal in 1927 at Wembley) are introduced.

A brilliant film.