Snowdrift at Bleath Gill
Encyclopedia
Snowdrift at Bleath Gill is a 1955 British Transport Film
documentary directed by Kenneth Fairbairn. The 10 minute-long film presents a first-hand account of a team of British Railways workmen freeing a goods train stuck in a snowdrift on the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway at Bleath Gill in the Pennines
on the border between County Durham
, Yorkshire
and Westmoreland
. A fine example of an industrial documentary, the British Film Institute
call it "One of the most outstanding films of its kind".
on the morning of Thursday, February 24 1955, hauling eight 20-ton wagons of limestone and minerals. At 5am, she became stuck at Bleath Gill near Stainmore Summit
which at 1370 feet high was the highest point on any railway line in England until its closure in 1962. The train, along with its crew remained stranded there until 3pm the following Monday, when the first rescue teams arrived.
On the rescue train were a crew of BTF staff—director Kennith Fairbairn, cameraman Robert Paynter
and assistant David Watkin—who had been hurriedly assigned by producer Edgar Anstey
to travel to to join the snowplough and a gang of fifty men travelling up the line to free the train.
The task was an arduous one; winds of 40 mph were blowing across the summit, which coupled with the arctic-like weather conditions to produce a terrible wind chill factor. The film crew themselves had not prepared for the filming, having been summoned to make the film at short notice; Bob Paynter recalled in 2008 that the film crew had not even brought anything to eat with them, and had to rely on the generosity of the workmen. The light for the film was provided by large Tilley lamp
s, a type of pressure lamp, which needed pumping-up by hand frequently.
Having dug the engine out of the snowdrift during the night, moving the steam locomotive was another difficult task; when a steam train gets becomes stuck in snow, the heat from its boiler melts the snow around it, but as the boiler cools the melted snow refreezes as ice, meaning that the engine is frozen solid. Workmen had to drape paraffin-soaked rags around the moving parts of the engine and set fire to them to thaw the motion.
David Watkin, the assistant on the film, who later became an Oscar-winning cinematographer, noted that at a subsequent screening of the film in the area, one of the railway officials commented that "If it hadn't been for the f***ing film people we'd have just left her to thaw out."
of 1954, the film features a commentary written by Paul le Saux, here narrated by Deryck Guyler
and Ben Williams. The film features a soundtrack of library music tracks by Hubert Clifford, Sidney Torch
and Charles Williams
.
In the 2008 BBC Four documentary on British Transport Films, Dominic Sandbrook
noted that in its celebration of hard manual labour the film is almost reminiscent of Soviet propaganda films. All of the people featured in the film are railway workmen from Darlington, West Auckland and Barnard Castle, as opposed to actors (as was sometimes the case in documentaries of the era). The author John Tomlinson cites this film as typifying the film unit's "celebration of energetic progressive industry".
Although the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway line over the Pennines no longer exists, the steam locomotive freed during the film - BR Standard Class 2
No. 78018 - survived and is currently being restored at the Darlington Railway Centre
. The snow plough seen is also preserved on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway
. The original Stainmore Summit board is preserved within the National Railway Museum
at York. The film is currently available on DVD from the British Film Institute
's British Transport Films collection (volume 1) and is sometimes used as a ten-minute "filler" on BBC Four, a use which alternates with its BTF sibling John Betjeman Goes By Train
, also ten minutes in duration.
British Transport Films
British Transport Films was an organisation set up in 1949 to make documentary films on the general subject of British transport. Its work included internal training films, travelogues , and "industrial films" promoting the progress of Britain's railway...
documentary directed by Kenneth Fairbairn. The 10 minute-long film presents a first-hand account of a team of British Railways workmen freeing a goods train stuck in a snowdrift on the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway at Bleath Gill in the Pennines
Pennines
The Pennines are a low-rising mountain range, separating the North West of England from Yorkshire and the North East.Often described as the "backbone of England", they form a more-or-less continuous range stretching from the Peak District in Derbyshire, around the northern and eastern edges of...
on the border between County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
and Westmoreland
Westmoreland
Westmoreland is a historic county in England. It may also refer to:-Places:Australia*Westmoreland County, New South WalesCanada*Westmorland County, New BrunswickJamaica*Westmoreland, Jamaica, a parishNew Zealand...
. A fine example of an industrial documentary, the British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
call it "One of the most outstanding films of its kind".
Production
The 4.20am goods train had set out from Kirkby StephenKirkby Stephen East railway station
Kirkby Stephen East railway station was situated on the South Durham & Lancashire Union Railway between Barnard Castle and Tebay. It served the town of Kirkby Stephen in England. The station opened to passenger traffic on 8 August 1861, and closed on 22 January 1962.The station had an extensive...
on the morning of Thursday, February 24 1955, hauling eight 20-ton wagons of limestone and minerals. At 5am, she became stuck at Bleath Gill near Stainmore Summit
Stainmore Summit
Stainmore Summit is the highest point on the trans-Pennine South Durham & Lancashire Union Railway, also known as the Stainmore Railway in Northern England. Located between Barras and Bowes stations, the railway over the summit was the highest in England at 1370 feet until its closure in 1962...
which at 1370 feet high was the highest point on any railway line in England until its closure in 1962. The train, along with its crew remained stranded there until 3pm the following Monday, when the first rescue teams arrived.
On the rescue train were a crew of BTF staff—director Kennith Fairbairn, cameraman Robert Paynter
Robert Paynter
Robert William Paynter BSC was an English cinematographer. He entered the film industry at the age of 15 as a camera trainee with the Government Film Department...
and assistant David Watkin—who had been hurriedly assigned by producer Edgar Anstey
Edgar Anstey
Edgar Anstey OBE, , was a leading British documentary film-maker....
to travel to to join the snowplough and a gang of fifty men travelling up the line to free the train.
The task was an arduous one; winds of 40 mph were blowing across the summit, which coupled with the arctic-like weather conditions to produce a terrible wind chill factor. The film crew themselves had not prepared for the filming, having been summoned to make the film at short notice; Bob Paynter recalled in 2008 that the film crew had not even brought anything to eat with them, and had to rely on the generosity of the workmen. The light for the film was provided by large Tilley lamp
Tilley lamp
The Tilley Lamp derives from John Tilley’s invention of the hydro-pneumatic blowpipe in 1813 in England. W.H.Tilley were manufacturing pressure lamps at their works in Stoke Newington in 1818, and Shoreditch, in the 1830s...
s, a type of pressure lamp, which needed pumping-up by hand frequently.
Having dug the engine out of the snowdrift during the night, moving the steam locomotive was another difficult task; when a steam train gets becomes stuck in snow, the heat from its boiler melts the snow around it, but as the boiler cools the melted snow refreezes as ice, meaning that the engine is frozen solid. Workmen had to drape paraffin-soaked rags around the moving parts of the engine and set fire to them to thaw the motion.
David Watkin, the assistant on the film, who later became an Oscar-winning cinematographer, noted that at a subsequent screening of the film in the area, one of the railway officials commented that "If it hadn't been for the f***ing film people we'd have just left her to thaw out."
Analysis
Most of the film is shot at night, which coupled with the black-and-white photography and paraffin lamp-lighting, gives the film an evocative atmosphere. The film was edited by John Legard, who noted during the BBC Four documentary that the shot of the snowplough charging into the snowdrift the morning after the digging was completed is particularly memorable. Like the earlier Elizabethan ExpressElizabethan Express
Elizabethan Express is a 1954 British Transport Film that follows The Elizabethan, a non-stop British Railways service from London to Edinburgh along the East Coast Main Line...
of 1954, the film features a commentary written by Paul le Saux, here narrated by Deryck Guyler
Deryck Guyler
Deryck Guyler was an English actor, best known for his portrayal of officious, short-tempered middle-aged men in sitcoms such as Please Sir! and Sykes.-Early life:...
and Ben Williams. The film features a soundtrack of library music tracks by Hubert Clifford, Sidney Torch
Sidney Torch
Sidney Torch MBE was a British pianist, cinema organist, conductor, orchestral arranger and a composer of light music.Born Sidney Torchinsky of a Ukrainian Father and an Estonian Mother in London, Torch learned the rudiments of music very quickly from his father, an orchestral trombonist...
and Charles Williams
Charles Williams (composer)
Charles Williams was a British composer and conductor, contributing music to over 50 films...
.
In the 2008 BBC Four documentary on British Transport Films, Dominic Sandbrook
Dominic Sandbrook
Dominic Sandbrook http://dominicsandbrook.com/wordpress/about/ is a British historian. Born in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, he was educated at Malvern College...
noted that in its celebration of hard manual labour the film is almost reminiscent of Soviet propaganda films. All of the people featured in the film are railway workmen from Darlington, West Auckland and Barnard Castle, as opposed to actors (as was sometimes the case in documentaries of the era). The author John Tomlinson cites this film as typifying the film unit's "celebration of energetic progressive industry".
Although the South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway line over the Pennines no longer exists, the steam locomotive freed during the film - BR Standard Class 2
BR standard class 2 2-6-0
The BR Standard Class 2 2-6-0 is a class of steam locomotive, one of the British Railways Standard classes of the 1950s. They were physically the smallest of the Standard classes; 65 were built....
No. 78018 - survived and is currently being restored at the Darlington Railway Centre
Darlington Railway Centre and Museum
Darlington Railway Centre and Museum, also known as Head of Steam, is located on the 1825 route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway which was the world's first steam powered passenger railway. Run by Darlington Borough Council the museum is located in the northern suburbs of Darlington in the...
. The snow plough seen is also preserved on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway
North Yorkshire Moors Railway
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway is a heritage railway in North Yorkshire, England. First opened in 1836 as the Whitby and Pickering Railway, the railway was planned in 1831 by George Stephenson as a means of opening up trade routes inland from the then important seaport of Whitby. The line...
. The original Stainmore Summit board is preserved within the National Railway Museum
National Railway Museum
The National Railway Museum is a museum in York forming part of the British National Museum of Science and Industry and telling the story of rail transport in Britain and its impact on society. It has won many awards, including the European Museum of the Year Award in 2001...
at York. The film is currently available on DVD from the British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
's British Transport Films collection (volume 1) and is sometimes used as a ten-minute "filler" on BBC Four, a use which alternates with its BTF sibling John Betjeman Goes By Train
John Betjeman Goes By Train
John Betjeman Goes By Train is a 1962 short documentary film made by British Transport Films and BBC East Anglia. The 10 minute long film features future poet laureate John Betjeman as he takes a memorable journey by train from King's Lynn railway station to Hunstanton railway station in Norfolk,...
, also ten minutes in duration.