'Steam is Everything' Impressions of The Festiniog Railway 1975

A film entitled Steam is everything – impressions of the Festiniog Railway, made in summer 1975. The back story of this is worth telling.
A year or so ago, a package arrived by post at Harbour Station, addressed to the archivists, containing two 16mm film cans along with a note saying they had been found by a neighbour in a skip, along with many other film cans following a bereavement house clearance in the village of Cilgerran, near Cardigan, Ceredigion. He thought the FR might be interested. The two films, both the same, were clearly in poor condition, but the chance to see what they contained could not be missed. They were passed to Ron Walker, who has great knowledge of cine film, plus also a working 16mm projector. He was able to confirm that the films, about 30 minutes long, were indeed in poor condition, but the content was a delight, both images and soundtrack. Ron enlisted the help of well-known railway film and video-maker Jon Marsh, who transferred the better-quality film of the two to DVD format, which was shown at the Gweithdy. It’s contents include prepping Blanche at Boston Lodge, crossing the Cob, Lottie Edwards, John Harrison at TyB, Bunny Lewis on the spiral and new Moelwyn Tunnel, Dduallt, Rhiw Goch signal box (then three weeks old, thus dating the film to 1975) and several line-side shots. There are voice overs by John Harrison, Bunny Lewis and Terry Turner in particular. All very evocative. The film’s maker is not known, but the cans had a West London address for Picture Post Productions. If anyone knows anything at all about any aspect of the film, the Archivists would be delighted to hear.

00:00 Boston Lodge
01:10 Portmadoc
03:14 Minffordd
03:56 Boston Lodge - Evan Davies
04:14 " - ?
04:59 " - ?
05:14 depart Minffordd
07:11 Tan y Bwlch - John Harrison
13:29 Deviation - Bunny Lewis
16:46 To Dduallt - Warren Shephard
20:44 Rhiw Goch - Terry Turner
23:24 Steam - ?

Sound
Derek Leather, Peter Maxwell

Cameraman
Stephen Goldblatt

Editor
Martin Carter

Producer
Paul Ibbetson

Director
Lindsay Dale
duration 26:46