COI

A former Doctor Who returns to Earth to deliver a road safety message.

On an English farm, six reckless children play at being a fierce band of Apache warriors, unaware of the many dangers to which they are exposed. (Public information short film produced on behalf of the British Government to warn children living in rural areas about the risks of playing near farm machinery.)

Ernie tells Eric to ‘be wise’ and not drive home after their Christmas party.

Colin Welland presents this public information film about the hazards of nighttime driving.

Reported cases of sexually transmitted disease took a sharp rise during and after World War II, but as this film testifies, sexual license amongst soldiers on the frontline wasn't the sole cause. Back on the home front, for many women, like Joan from No. 19, loneliness or newfound independence acted as an incentive to extramarital promiscuity.

Filmed partly in Urdu, Insaaf (Injustice) is a public information film aimed at Britain’s South Asian communities. Produced through the Central Office of Information for the Race Relations Board, it seeks to inform viewers of the Board’s role in enforcing the 1968 Race Relations Act, via the story of a young man denied a job he is qualified for due to the racism of his potential employer.

Teenagers Sandy and Alan are keen motorcyclists, but while Sandy insists on getting proper training, Alan refuses, even though this makes him twenty times more likely to have an accident.

An exhortation to drivers to pay attention to road safety. In just 15 minutes, John Krish manages to give this road safety film something new and different by presenting events not from the point of view of the driver, but of his brain, memory and ego, who operate from a rather camp technology-driven command centre.

A short film to warn children of sexual predators.

Even the most devout monarchist may feel uncomfortable watching this film - hindsight makes this a rather poignant experience. Although clearly intended as a hymn to royal life, with a panting narration describing the bliss Charles, Anne and Andrew are experiencing (the film was made three years before the birth of Edward), the images tell a different story - only a couple of shots feature the children smiling, while the first glimpse of Andrew as a baby, a spotlight shining on his face as photographers snap away, is a faintly sinister symbol of the royals’ lack of privacy from birth. The knowledge that a future of divorce and tabloid scandal would tarnish these children's adult lives adds irony to this snapshot of supposed utopia.

In the middle of a six-week tour of the Indian sub-continent between January and March 1961, the Queen and Prince Philip visited Pakistan and East Pakistan, now Bangladesh.

A film made for the Central Office of Information concerning Britain's coastline, with music by Michael Nyman.

National insurance made amusing by the eccentric Richard Massingham.

Britain and Turkey had not always enjoyed the ‘special’ friendship referred to in the commentary. Their armies were on opposing sides in the First World War and there had been disagreementt over the future of Cyprus in the run up to the settlement of 1960. In the 1960s relations improved and this reciprocal tour (the President of Turkey, Cevdet Sunay, had paid a state visit to the United Kingdom in November 1967) was regarded as a milestone in the bilateral alliance between the two countries. The camera affords the viewer a prime vantage point by which to marvel at the splendour of the pageantry and contemplate every nuance of gesture and sartorial detail. As we linger on the bejewelled Queen waiting patiently at the British Embassy in Ankara to greet her guests we wonder what it might be like to be in her shoes.

Part of BFI collection "Portrait of a People."

As part of a wider anti-litter message, this film addresses the problems of rubbish left on beaches.

This film tells the story of Ronald, an intelligent boy who wants to become an architect or surveyor. His cousins Paul and Jane cannot believe that Ronald has any awareness of building sites. In Paul's imagination, he and his sister set Ronald in a number of typical sites, to see if he can survive the hazards that kill and maim many children each year. Ronald eventually learns the hard way that he did not know as much about building sites as he thought.

Valerie Singleton shows children of primary and middle school age how they can cross the road safely by following the Green Cross Code.

Watching Sierra Leone Greets the Queen gives one a flavour of the hectic nature of royal tours; in just one week (from the 25th November to the 1st December 1961) the Queen and Prince Philip covered an exhausting array of sights, zooming around the country to take in the capital city Freetown, Bo, the Guma Dam, digging for diamonds (Sierra Leone’s biggest export), Hangha and observing the iron ore works at Marampa. The visit was politically significant - Sierra Leona had become independent from Britain in April the same year. Colonialism’s influence is felt throughout the film, and not just in the place names (Victoria Park, Queen Elizabeth II Quay) - the ‘day in the life of a Bo schoolboy’ seems not radically different from the British equivalent, while the ‘children’s rally’ consists of boys dressed impractically in boaters and blazers, and girls marching in gymslips.

Produced by British Movietone for “Her Majesty’s Central Office of Information”, Royal Destiny traces Queen Elizabeth II’s young life up to her ascension to the throne.