Lieutenant Pimple and the Stolen Submarine
- Twickenham
- 1914
The Airship Destroyer
England faces aerial invasion in this entertaining Edwardian science fiction fantasy.
This dramatic enemy-invasion fantasy bears all the hallmarks of Sci-Fi films to come: crazy contraptions, a fleet of flying objects, a sky battle, crumbling buildings and a city in ruins. Pioneering fantasy and 'trick' films director W.R. Booth used cut-out animation and models to create the airship menace. Can our hero save the day and get the girl with the aid of his airship-destroyer?
The threat of aerial warfare was, in 1909, both futuristic and prophetic. That year saw both the first aeroplane flight over the English Chanel and the establishment of the British Secret Service - reflecting mounting fears of foreign espionage and invasion. The Airship Destroyer was re-released in 1915, by which time the prospect of Zeppelin attack was a very real concern.
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The First World War: The Road to War
Hindsight is 20:20: how looking back at the films of the early 1910s reveals glimpses of what few at the time saw coming - a world-changing war.
The outbreak of war in July 1914 came as a shock to most. But from our privileged position today, we can find among the films produced in the early 1910s scattered hints of the looming conflict that would split Europe in two.
One ominous sign was the proliferation of stories of international espionage and intrigue (played as drama or comedy), while newsreels offer evidence of the prominence of the armed forces in British society. Even so, the overwhelming majority of films of the period point to a nation blissfully unaware of the horrors to come.
21 videos in this collection
1
Lieutenant Pimple and the Stolen Submarine
2
The German Spy Peril
3
Balloon Accident at St Cloud Topical Budget 152-1
4
Servants Superceded
5
Fife and Forfar Yeomanry Topical Budget 164-1
6
8,000 Men on Strike at Woolwich Arsenal Topical Budget 150-1
7
Carpentier and Gunboat Smith Topical Budget 151-2
8
Army Cross Country Topical Budget 136-2
9
The Great East End Anarchist Battle
10
New Type of Cruiser Topical Budget 11-2
11
Aerial Submarine A Startling Forecast. Piracy in Sea and Air
12
Millionaires at Play Topical Budget 136-2
13
Lord Lovat's Scouts Topical Budget 164-1
14
The Airship Destroyer
15
The Paris Sensation: Scenes at the Funeral of M. Calmette, The Murdered Editor of the 'Figaro' Gaumont Graphic No. 313
16
From the Fighting Top of a Battleship in Action
17
The English Switzerland
18
Bobs and the Baby Marksmen
19
The Opening of New Drill Hall at Haltwhistle
20
From Antwerp to Ostend
21