Beached Elephants

From the collection of

The Box
Established in 1992, the South West Film & Television Archive collection spans from 1893 to the present day containing more than 250,000 items. Formed from a variety of depositors, including broadcast news and programmes material from the Westward and TSW archive. In 2018 the archive collection transferred to The Box in Plymouth.

Beached Elephants


Four elephants are walked through the town of Weymouth to the beach and a welcome dunk in the sea. Sophie, Dumbo, Sue and Francis are four Asian elephants from Chipperfield’s Circus and although this is a publicity stunt, the elephants are keen to cool down. One onlooker admits she was so startled to see the elephants walking along the seafront that she didn’t brake in time and drove into the back of the car in front. Was this breaking or braking news back in the day?


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