TOPICAL BUDGET 262-1 [Main Title]

Log in to create clips, download free screeners and save clips/films in Collections. Click here to find out more.

  • Title: TOPICAL BUDGET 262-1 [Main Title]
  • Film Number: NTB 262-1
  • Other titles:
  • Summary: I. A game of football. II. Trade Union demonstration against high food prices. III. Rumania declares war. IV. Brigade sports.
  • Description: I. 'FOOTBALL SEASON OPENS. The Football match at the Naval and Military Carnival, promoted by the 1st. Batt. City of London Regiment'. A game of football before a stadium crowd. The goal - near which the camera is situated - is merely a frame, without the conventional netting. II. 'WAR ON FOOD PIRATES. A huge demonstration marching through Trafalgar Square. "The Government must confiscate the food supplies" - Mr Ben Tillett'. HA onto procession of marchers - a banner reads 'NATIONAL UNION OF RAILWAYMEN. - HANDS OFF THE PEOPLES' FOOD - DOWN WITH THE EXPLOITERS OR UP WITH WAGES'. Another less forthrightly Socialist slogan is 'FEED THY LAMBS', and there are a series of banners representing trade union branches - Somers Town, Saint Pancras, etc. III. 'RUMANIA DECLARES WAR. Rumania declares herself on the side of Civilisation and the Entente Powers. Men and Artillery of the Rumanian Army who have been in strict training since the outbreak of the European War'. LS as teams of six horses drawing Maxim machine guns gallop left to right across open ground. MS as the machine gun chariot is separated from its ammunition limber and deployed. In a town square a detachment of troops stack arms and remove their kit after a march. Despite much enthusiasm some of the drill seems rather odd - having stacked their kit in front of them one rank of soldiers steps back, whereupon the second rank turns and jumps over the kit to join their comrades. IV. 'BRIGADE SPORTS. A novel competition - the Crawling Race, which created great amusement. Maj-General Miles, presenting the prizes'. Two men sit astride a horizontal beam battering each other with pillows - no result is immediately apparent. Men crawl on all-fours, weaving in and out of lines of flags to return to their start line - even allowing for unnatural camera speeds, some of the participants are clearly accomplished crawlers. Major-General Miles presents prizes.
  • Access Conditions: IWM Attribution: © IWM (NTB 262-1)
  • Featured Period: 1914-1918
  • Production Date: 1916-08-30
  • Production Country: GB
  • Production Details: War Office (Production sponsor) Topical Film Company (Production company)
  • Personalities, Units and Organisations: Tillett, Benjamin (person) Miles (Major-General) (person) British Army, London Regiment, 1st Battalion (regiment/service) National Union of Railwaymen (regiment/service) Dockers' Union (regiment/service) Romanian Army (regiment/service)
  • Keywords: recreation, British military - sport: football (object name) politics, British - alternative: demonstration over food prices (object name) operations, Rumanian military - routine (object name) recreation, British military - sport: crawling race (object name) recreation, British military - sport: football (object name) recreation, British military - sport: sports day (object name) London, England, UK (geography) Rumania (?) (geography)
  • Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W Sound format: Silent Soundtrack language: None Title language: English Subtitle language: English
  • Technical Details: Format: 35mm Number of items/reels/tapes: 1 Footage: 330 ft; Running time: 3 mins
  • HD Media:Yes
  • Notes: Summary (item II): the march ended in Hyde Park, where the men were addressed by a number of speakers, including Ben Tillett of the Dockers' Union. The thrust of Tillett's address was that the working class made up most of the armed forces, but whatever benefit might be derived from the war would go to the capitalists, amongst whom the most outrageous were those manipulating food prices. A motion was passed in support of the executive committee of the National Union of Railwaymen, who had decided to ask for an increase of 10/- per week to meet the increased cost of living.
  • Link to IWM Collections page:

    NTB 262-1

  • Related IWM Collections Objects:
Register