Every Day Except Christmas
Encyclopedia
Every Day Except Christmas is a 37-minute documentary film
filmed in 1957 at the Covent Garden
fruit, vegetable and flower market, then located in the Covent Garden area of East central London
. It was directed by Lindsay Anderson
and produced by Karel Reisz
and Leon Clore under the sponsorship of Ford of Britain
, the first of the company's "Look At Britain" series.
Every Day and other short, mostly documentary films made within two or three years, reflected the concept of Free Cinema
, films which were "free" in the sense that they were made outside the traditional structure of filmmaking.
plays.
"All these roads leads to Covent Garden
" says the narrator, dramatist Alun Owen
, and then there follows a montage of the market workers slowly beginning their night's work, work which they do 364 days a year. As the "streets are stirring", the vegetables and flowers begin to arrive and stalls are gradually set up; the overall pace of the editing picks up as the activity increases and the rhythm of night establishes itself.
Up to this point, the rhythm of the film parallels that of the activities it portrays; the steady pace of the loading and arrival at Covent Garden gives way to a faster pace of editing as Anderson carefully establishes mood and feeling by focusing on the activities of several of the individual workers who are introduced to us by name. There is some casual bantering, some jokes, some time for a cup of tea, but it's mostly steady work. A montage of shots follows and it establishes the routine: flower and vegetable boxes are being opened and set up, their contents exposed for the buyers, lorries are unloaded, deliveries are being made to the stallholders until, finally all is ready.
So Every Day proceeds by respecting the dignity of the market workers and their roles in the rhythm of the market's operations. Then the pace slows again: it's time for a breather before the buyers arrive. This time Anderson allows his camera and the pace of his editing to focus on many of the individuals relaxing; these include not only the market workers, but the “night time habitués” of the market cafes where they can get a cup of tea, have a chat, snooze a bit, and prepare themselves for the next phase.
By 4 a.m. the market is empty, the streets are empty; the camera pans across silent rows of flower and vegetable stalls. We wait. “Daylight brings traffic back to the market” says the narrator, and the mood quickly changes. It's suddenly busier, noisier, and the film's rhythms reflect this. The familiar sound of the BBC Home Service announcer's “good morning” at 6.30am is heard against the arrival of many of the corporate buyers, those from the large store chains. By 7am business is brisk, and this is reflected in the many voice-overs we hear with snippets of conversation, orders being taken, porters given instructions, all the natural sounds of market activity placed over a montage of constant movement. Then, as movement is "steadily outwards" there is a sequence of porters (originally, we are told, all were women; only one remains, Alice, an elderly woman) with boxes of all sorts, many mounted on their heads, moving the produce and flowers out to waiting lorries and larger barrows.
As the market activity slows by about 8am, once again the film's pacing reflects a quieter time in the workers’ day. Cafes are busy again and older female flower sellers, around since Queen Victoria
was on the throne, we are told, look for bargains as we hear their chatter about the old days when every man wore a flower. "By 11am there's nothing left" and loading of big lorries going out into the country is well under way. In a montage of loaded lorries leaving the market (not surprisingly, perhaps, a few of which are made by Ford) the activities have come full circle: the market's day ends where it began, and film comes to an end with a review of the faces of the market workers to whom the film is dedicated.
."
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
filmed in 1957 at the Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
fruit, vegetable and flower market, then located in the Covent Garden area of East central London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. It was directed by Lindsay Anderson
Lindsay Anderson
Lindsay Gordon Anderson was an Indian-born, British feature film, theatre and documentary director, film critic, and leading light of the Free Cinema movement and the British New Wave...
and produced by Karel Reisz
Karel Reisz
Karel Reisz was a Czech-born British filmmaker who was active in post–war Britain, and one of the pioneers of the new realist strain in 1950s and 1960s British cinema.-Early life:...
and Leon Clore under the sponsorship of Ford of Britain
Ford of Britain
Ford of Britain is a British wholly owned subsidiary of Ford of Europe, a subsidiary of Ford Motor Company. Its business started in 1909 and has its registered office in Brentwood, Essex...
, the first of the company's "Look At Britain" series.
Every Day and other short, mostly documentary films made within two or three years, reflected the concept of Free Cinema
Free Cinema
Free Cinema was a documentary film movement that emerged in England in the mid-1950s. The term referred to an absence of propagandised intent or deliberate box office appeal. Co-founded by Lindsay Anderson, though he later disdained the 'movement' tag, with Karel Reisz, Tony Richardson and Lorenza...
, films which were "free" in the sense that they were made outside the traditional structure of filmmaking.
Synopsis
Opening with a title card dedicating the film to about seven or eight of the drivers/loaders and market workers whom we’ll meet as the film progresses, Anderson establishes the rituals of the daily routine; the loading of the lorries, the post-midnight drive through the deserted country and city streets as, voice over, the BBC Light Programme's announcer says goodnight, signs off, and the national anthem, God Save the QueenGod Save the Queen
"God Save the Queen" is an anthem used in a number of Commonwealth realms and British Crown Dependencies. The words of the song, like its title, are adapted to the gender of the current monarch, with "King" replacing "Queen", "he" replacing "she", and so forth, when a king reigns...
plays.
"All these roads leads to Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
" says the narrator, dramatist Alun Owen
Alun Owen
Alun Owen was a British screenwriter, predominantly active in television, but best remembered by a wider audience for writing the screenplay of The Beatles' debut feature film A Hard Day's Night ....
, and then there follows a montage of the market workers slowly beginning their night's work, work which they do 364 days a year. As the "streets are stirring", the vegetables and flowers begin to arrive and stalls are gradually set up; the overall pace of the editing picks up as the activity increases and the rhythm of night establishes itself.
Up to this point, the rhythm of the film parallels that of the activities it portrays; the steady pace of the loading and arrival at Covent Garden gives way to a faster pace of editing as Anderson carefully establishes mood and feeling by focusing on the activities of several of the individual workers who are introduced to us by name. There is some casual bantering, some jokes, some time for a cup of tea, but it's mostly steady work. A montage of shots follows and it establishes the routine: flower and vegetable boxes are being opened and set up, their contents exposed for the buyers, lorries are unloaded, deliveries are being made to the stallholders until, finally all is ready.
So Every Day proceeds by respecting the dignity of the market workers and their roles in the rhythm of the market's operations. Then the pace slows again: it's time for a breather before the buyers arrive. This time Anderson allows his camera and the pace of his editing to focus on many of the individuals relaxing; these include not only the market workers, but the “night time habitués” of the market cafes where they can get a cup of tea, have a chat, snooze a bit, and prepare themselves for the next phase.
By 4 a.m. the market is empty, the streets are empty; the camera pans across silent rows of flower and vegetable stalls. We wait. “Daylight brings traffic back to the market” says the narrator, and the mood quickly changes. It's suddenly busier, noisier, and the film's rhythms reflect this. The familiar sound of the BBC Home Service announcer's “good morning” at 6.30am is heard against the arrival of many of the corporate buyers, those from the large store chains. By 7am business is brisk, and this is reflected in the many voice-overs we hear with snippets of conversation, orders being taken, porters given instructions, all the natural sounds of market activity placed over a montage of constant movement. Then, as movement is "steadily outwards" there is a sequence of porters (originally, we are told, all were women; only one remains, Alice, an elderly woman) with boxes of all sorts, many mounted on their heads, moving the produce and flowers out to waiting lorries and larger barrows.
As the market activity slows by about 8am, once again the film's pacing reflects a quieter time in the workers’ day. Cafes are busy again and older female flower sellers, around since Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
was on the throne, we are told, look for bargains as we hear their chatter about the old days when every man wore a flower. "By 11am there's nothing left" and loading of big lorries going out into the country is well under way. In a montage of loaded lorries leaving the market (not surprisingly, perhaps, a few of which are made by Ford) the activities have come full circle: the market's day ends where it began, and film comes to an end with a review of the faces of the market workers to whom the film is dedicated.
Critical reaction
As noted by critic Christophe Dupin: "The film evokes what Anderson has called the 'poetry of everyday life' and has the best lyrical qualities of the wartime films of Anderson's idol Humphrey JenningsHumphrey Jennings
Frank Humphrey Sinkler Jennings was an English documentary filmmaker and one of the founders of the Mass Observation organization...
."