Know Your Midlands No. 13

From the collection of

Media Archive for Central England
MACE is the strategic lead organisation for screen heritage for the East and West Midlands regions. An independent charity based at University of Lincoln, MACE preserves and makes accessible a collection of more than 100,000 historic moving images representative of the diverse cultures and histories of communities throughout the heart of England from the Lincolnshire coast to the Welsh border.

Know Your Midlands No. 13


A look around some of the high spots of England's smallest county.

There are only two towns in Rutland and, not surprisingly, both feature in this short silent travelogue of the county. Uppingham, with its historic public school (from which Stephen Fry was once expelled), is at the start and Oakham, with its ancient Buttercross and wooden stocks, towards the end. Elsewhere we see the ancient turf maze at Wing and visit churches and bucolic villages that await discovery by the traveller who, in 1957, could enjoy wonderfully empty roads.

Despite a tenacious battle to retain its independence Rutland was absorbed into Leicestershire in 1974. The county did however return in 1997 following a recommendation by the Local Government Commission for England. The county's biggest landmark, the reservoir at Empingham known as Rutland Water, had not yet been built when this short filler produced for ATV by Birmingham Commercial Films was shot.


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