Movies: Gpo Film Unit

  • 1936
    Night Mail

    Night Mail (1936)

    Night Mail

    6.11936HD

    This documentary short examines the special train on which mail is sorted, dropped and collected on the run, and delivered in Scotland on the overnight run from Euston, London to Glasgow....

    Night Mail
  • 1935
    A Colour Box

    A Colour Box (1935)

    A Colour Box

    6.01935HD

    Animated shapes dance to Cuban music. This was one of the first animations to be painted directly onto the film....

    A Colour Box
  • 1936
    Rainbow Dance

    Rainbow Dance (1936)

    Rainbow Dance

    6.01936HD

    Rainbow Dance is a 1936 British animated film released by the GPO Film Unit. This is Lye's second film. It uses the Gasparcolor process....

    Rainbow Dance
  • 1935
    Coal Face

    Coal Face (1935)

    Coal Face

    6.11935HD

    1935 documentary about the hard working life of Welsh coal miners....

    Coal Face
  • 1937
    A Job in a Million

    A Job in a Million (1937)

    A Job in a Million

    01937HD

    A Cockney lad trains to be a messenger boy....

    A Job in a Million
  • 1934
    The Song of Ceylon

    The Song of Ceylon (1934)

    The Song of Ceylon

    6.21934HD

    Ambitious documentary chronicling the cultural life and religious customs of the Sinhalese and the effects of advanced industrialism on such customs....

    The Song of Ceylon
  • 1934
    Post-Haste

    Post-Haste (1934)

    Post-Haste

    4.81934HD

    Humphrey Jennings' first film as a director, a brief overview of the British postal service....

    Post-Haste
  • 1939
    Love on the Wing

    Love on the Wing (1939)

    Love on the Wing

    61939HD

    Animation featuring dancing black and white shadows....

    Love on the Wing
  • 1934
    Granton Trawler

    Granton Trawler (1934)

    Granton Trawler

    4.91934HD

    Documentary following an Edinburgh fishing trawler, the "Isabella Grieg"....

    Granton Trawler
  • 1934
    6.30 Collection

    6.30 Collection (1934)

    6.30 Collection

    21934HD

    Short documentary showing the workings of a large London sorting office....

    6.30 Collection
  • 1935
    BBC: The Voice of Britain

    BBC: The Voice of Britain (1935)

    BBC: The Voice of Britain

    01935HD

    An impressionistic portrait of the BBC....

    BBC: The Voice of Britain
  • 1940
    London Can Take It!

    London Can Take It! (1940)

    London Can Take It!

    6.51940HD

    A tribute to the courage and resiliency of Britons during the darkest days of the London Blitz....

    London Can Take It!
  • 1934
    John Atkins Saves Up

    John Atkins Saves Up (1934)

    John Atkins Saves Up

    01934HD

    Combining a whimsical romantic tale, practical information about the Post Office Savings Bank, and a gently experimental film-making technique, this film entertainingly depicts some of the prospects opened up by having a savings account....

    John Atkins Saves Up
  • 1938
    Penny Journey

    Penny Journey (1938)

    Penny Journey

    5.51938HD

    As the subtitle of the film suggests - The Story of a Post Card from Manchester to Graffham - this journey is very much focused on the process of sorting, transporting and delivering the postcard in question....

    Penny Journey
  • 1936
    Gardens of the Orient

    Gardens of the Orient (1936)

    Gardens of the Orient

    01936HD

    This portait of life on the tea plantations is decidedly rosy – clearly, there are no exploited workers here. However, the film provides an intriguing overview of tea production – from the planting of tea seeds to the final shipping of the precious l...

    Gardens of the Orient
  • 1935
    Sixpenny Telegram

    Sixpenny Telegram (1935)

    Sixpenny Telegram

    01935HD

    Experimental GPO publicity film extolling the virtues of the telegram service....

    Sixpenny Telegram
  • 1940
    Spring Offensive

    Spring Offensive (1940)

    Spring Offensive

    6.51940HD

    Documentary short by Humphrey Jennings. The GPO Film Unit was a subdivision of the UK General Post Office. The unit was established in 1933, taking on responsibilities of the Empire Marketing Board Film Unit. Headed by John Grierson, it was set up to...

    Spring Offensive
  • 1940
    War and Order

    War and Order (1940)

    War and Order

    01940HD

    Police work during World War II in Britain....

    War and Order
  • 1936
    Message from Genova

    Message from Genova (1936)

    Message from Genova

    01936HD

    This expository film shows the mood of European society on the eve of the Second World War while promoting the values of international cooperation. Using the Swiss office of the BBC as an example, the film describes the functioning of radio and prese...

    Message from Genova
  • 1934
    Pett and Pott: A Fairy Story of the Suburbs

    Pett and Pott: A Fairy Story of the Suburbs (1934)

    Pett and Pott: A Fairy Story of the Suburbs

    51934HD

    The film, made to advertise domestic telephone sets, is based around two very different families. The Petts are conventional, happy and have children; the Potts are unconventional and unhappy, without children....

    Pett and Pott: A Fairy Story of the Suburbs