British Rail takes on the snow of 1962-1963.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

I posted this at another thread {3 Amtrak Trains With Hundreds of Passengers Stranded Since Monday}. People seem to like it.

Snow (1963)
http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1234415/

Snow was Geoffrey Jones' first film for British Transport Films (BTF) but it owes its existence to a happy twist of fate. In September 1962 Jones began his research for a film about design for the British Railways Board. Armed with a 16mm camera, he travelled throughout the country, shooting film 'notes' of anything he found particularly interesting.

Viewing the footage, Jones was struck by several images of black steam trains churning down the tracks against a glaring white backdrop, and hit upon the idea of making a new, separate film contrasting the comfort of the passengers with the often Herculean efforts of the workmen to keep the trains going in hazardous conditions. On January 31st, 1963 Jones met with BTF head Edgar Anstey. Realising that the film would have to be made quickly or delayed until the following winter, Anstey agreed straightaway and shooting commenced the very next day. Jones and his barebones crew proceeded to chase winter conditions across the country.

Unable to afford his first choice of music, 'Teen Beat' by American Jazz musician Sandy Nelson, Jones had British musician Johnny Hawksworth re-record the tune, expanding it to twice its original length by reducing it to half its original speed at the start and steadily accelerating the tempo over a period of eight minutes to a speed approximately twice as fast as the original. Daphne Oram of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop added various filters.

[intaglio]

1. I remember that winter

and how quickly rail lines and roads were cleared because there were many employees of British Rail. Now if the wrong type of snow falls ...

[chuckstevens]

2. Dream Academy: Life in a Northern Town

"He said in winter 1963, it felt like the world would freeze, with John F. Kennedy and the Beatles." "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah."