Panorama of the Ophir before Leaving Sydney Harbour

1900
2m

See the royal yacht Ophir in Sydney harbour on its tour of the Empire

6 June 1901, and the royal yacht, HMS Ophir, is at anchor in Sydney Harbour with Government House in the background. She is about to depart Sydney carrying the Duke and Duchess of York (the future King George V and Queen Mary) who spent almost eight months on an extensive tour of the British Empire, visiting countries including Malta, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada.

The film was issued by the Warwick Trading Company, probably filmed by official photographer, CPO Thomas M McGregor who had also worked with Alfred J West (of 'Our Navy' fame), though it is also attributed to Warwick regular Joseph Rosenthal.

Victorian Mysteries

A selection of some of the most enigmatic of early British films. Can you help us unlock their secrets?

We can learn a lot about early films from producers' and exhibitors' catalogues, in contemporary accounts in newspapers or the trade press, or by examining the original celluloid film. But try as we might, archivists and historians sometimes draw a blank. Where and when was this film shot, and who by? Is it British? French? American? Egyptian?

We've collected here some of the earliest films in the BFI's collections, which we wish we knew more about. So grab your deerstalker and your magnifying glass, and put your observational skills to the test on this enigmatic assortment. Can you recognise a building, a landscape, a military uniform?