Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: 'London Can Take It' narration

This is topic 'London Can Take It' narration in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://ft-forum.com/ft/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=003892

Posted by Stephen Furley (Member # 1277) on 02-13-2005, 03:53 AM:

Does anybody know who spoke the narration on the Humphrey Jennings film 'London Can Take It'? I believe he was an American Journalist.

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-13-2005, 04:24 AM:

It was Quentin Reynolds, the London correspondent of Collier's Weekly. The film was intended for American audiences, hence getting an American celebrity journlist to do the voiceover. But the lines such as 'I am a neutral observer' and 'These are not Hollywood sound effects' were put there by British Ministry of Information officials. The propaganda objective was to persuade Americans of the necessity of entering the war in Europe. The film was made and released during the height of the Battle of Britain, several months before Pearl Harbor, while the 'America First' movement was still a strong political force.

A second version, called Britain Can Take It was released domestically (i.e. in Britain) in which Reynolds gives an on-screen introduction explaining that the film was made to show American audiences what was happening to London.

Edit, several hours later: the following spring a left-wing group in the North West of England made an alternative version (on 16mm and with the commentary played via sound on disc) called Manchester Took it, Too. It was a thinly veiled attack on official propaganda being too 'London-centric' which accused it of ignoring the victims of Nazi bombing in the industrial heartlands north of Watford for the sake of grabbing international headlines. Some of the black humour in this film blows a very big hole in the idea of WWII official propaganda representing national unity. When I first read it I found Paul Addison's book The Road to 1945 quite an eye-opener in that it showed that to a great extent, party politics went on in 'business as usual' mode for most of the war: this film certainly backs it up. It's preserved by the North West Film Archive in Manchester.

[ 02-13-2005, 11:09 AM: Message edited by: Leo Enticknap ]

Posted by Stephen Furley (Member # 1277) on 02-13-2005, 05:51 PM:

Thanks Leo.

I've just done three very long projection shifts since Frday, back to proper job tomorrow, but this morning, still half asleep, I turned the televsiion on, and there was a wartime programme on the UK History channel. Several longiish film clips were shown, one I'm pretty sure with the same narrator; his voice s rather dstinctive, isn't it? I haven't seen 'London Can Take It' for some years, but I don't think the clip was from that. Do you know of any other films that he did?

quote:
the following spring a left-wing group in the North West of England made an alternative version (on 16mm and with the commentary played via sound on disc) called Manchester Took it, Too. It's preserved by the North West Film Archive in Manchester.

That's interesting; I've never heard of that one. When you say 'left-wing group' and 'Manchester' in the same sentance the thng that comes to mind is the Co-Operative movement, and they were certanly known for using film to put their message across. Were they responsible for this film?

Posted by David Buckley (Member # 2600) on 02-13-2005, 11:03 PM:

quote: Stephen Furley
I've just done three very long projection shifts since Frday

Could I ask where?

David

Who used to live in sunny Croydon.

Posted by Stephen Furley (Member # 1277) on 02-14-2005, 03:55 AM:

David, how long ago were you in Croydon? If it was fairly recently then I can give you a short answer here. If you've been gone a long time then I'll need to send you a much longer answer by e-mail.

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 02-14-2005, 04:23 AM:

quote: Stephen Furley
...and there was a wartime programme on the UK History channel.

Good to see that TV history industry is offering some new and original subject matter! [Big Grin]

An archivist friend of mine once remarked that The History Channel should really be renamed The Hitler Channel and that slogan, 'All history, all the time!' should really be 'All Nazis, all the time!'. He wondered if their next documentary would be called Adolf Hitler: His Secret Role in World War II.

quote: Stephen Furley
Do you know of any other films that he did?

There was a follow up called Christmas Under Fire made the following year. Similar sort of thing; Reynolds voiceover, but it was directed by Watt, not Jennings. Other than that I'm not aware of Reynolds having been involved with any films in Britain. That isn't to say that he wasn't involved with any in the US, either, but he was first and foremost a print journalist.

quote: Stephen Furley
When you say 'left-wing group' and 'Manchester' in the same sentance the thng that comes to mind is the Co-Operative movement, and they were certanly known for using film to put their message across. Were they responsible for this film?

The NWFA's online catalogue gives the following:

quote:
Film No.176
MANCHESTER TOOK IT TOO
Producer: C.W.S. Publicity Department Film Production Unit
1940/41
b/w, sound, 10 min.13 sec.

Scenes of the Blitz damage to Manchester and the clearing up operations - shows the old Market Place, Corporation Street, the CWS building, Mitchell Hall, Piccadilly, Old Shambles, the Free Trade Hall, the Royal Exchange and the Cathedral. The work of clearing up is being done by firemen, soldiers and civilians, using a steam engine and a crane.

Dunno what CWS stands for: something Workers' Society, perhaps? It's nearly 10 years since I've seen the film, and therefore couldn't give you a definitive answer.

Posted by Stephen Furley (Member # 1277) on 02-14-2005, 05:40 AM:

Co-Operative Wholesale Society; the full name for the Co-Op.

I suppose there's plenty of archive material available from that time, and it's cheap, in television production terms, to make these programmes. Then there's the 60th anniversary of the end of the War ths year. A lot of the interviews used in these programmes seem to be quite old, a lot of this stuff looks like it was shot on 1980s 16mm VNF.

Given the subject matter of the programme, 'Christmas Under Fire' could well be it.