Lieutenant Pimple and the Stolen Submarine
- Twickenham
- 1914
Rare film of soldiers working out before heading to the battlefields.
This display of Swedish-style physical jerks was clearly intended to instil confidence in the British troops destined for the Front. The Lovat Scouts were a Scottish Highland regiment founded and commanded by Simon Joseph Fraser, 14th Lord Lovat, during the Second Boer War. The unit later split in two, and both regiments were active during WWI.
Swedish-style gymnastics had been incorporated into the British school curriculum in the late 19th century and later adapted for military training.
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.