British Pathe

Reel 1.
British Motor Corporation Ltd presents
Escape From Toil.

Photographed and Produced by the B.M.C. Film Unit, Oxford. In conjunction with Associated British Pathe.

Car draws up at Customs post. C/U passports handed out of car and checked. Car drives over border to Switzerland....

Reel 1.
British Motor Corporation Ltd presents
Escape From Toil.

Photographed and Produced by the B.M.C. Film Unit, Oxford. In conjunction with Associated British Pathe.

Car draws up at Customs post. C/U passports handed out of car and checked. Car drives over border to Switzerland. Views around Basle. View of very old red brick town hall. Flowers and fruit on sale in market place. Various stalls. Chimpanzee in cage at Basle zoo watched by crowds. Two giraffes film from behind wire fence. Seals play in water. Two leopards in their enclosure. Young boy looks at Pelicans. Three elephants in their enclosure. Flamingos stand by a pond. Pan down the medieval Spalen Gate on the way out of Basle. Car drives past an ancient roman style house in Augst. Views of River Rhine. Two men in a canoe paddle along the river. L/S the Munot Fortress in Schaffhausen. This is an interesting looking structure raised up on the hill above the town.

Cars drive over the bridge in Schaffhausen which crosses the Rhine. High angle shot of the Rhine falls just outside the town. White water comes down the rapids and waterfall. The car (which we are now told is a Wolseley 1500 saloon) drives into the car park. Views of the falls with pleasure cruiser taking passengers to get a closer look at the falls. A smaller boat takes people to stand on the rocky promontory in the centre of the falls.

Views of Stein am Rhein. The town has lots of beautiful medieval buildings. Many of the buildings are decorated with frescos, paintings and woodcarvings. (The car keeps driving through the shot).

The Wolseley 1500 saloon is directed along an old cobbled road by a policeman. L/V the car crosses a bridge over the Rhine. A boat passes underneath the bridge. The paddlesteamer has lots of passengers on it looking at the beautiful old buildings. The camera follows the boat along the river. We see the ancient monastery of St. George.

Car drives past old house in the village of Gottliben, Switzerland. The house is white and black and has interesting dome structures on the roof. L/V the town of St. Gall. Views from car as we drive through St. Gall. The car drives past a man on a bicycle with trailer. Views of a building (possibly the Cathedral or the library). More driving shots through town. Shots of stalls on street market. The car drives out of town.

Car drives towards the camera as it approaches the village of Herisau. A woman pushes a trolley down the street festooned with Swiss flags and toys. She is carrying lots of balloons. It is the 100 year old "Children's Festival". A group of children playing accordions walk down the road in procession. Children carrying flags process, followed by young girls in white dresses wearing flower head dresses. Girls carrying sunshades. Girls carrying blue balls (could be globes?). Boys playing drums march past. Girls carrying wild flowers. Children in Swiss costume carrying old fashioned tools such as scythes. Children waving black and white flag (may be the flag of the Canton).

Car drives through the town of Appenzell. Past painted buildings and small water trough. Attractive shop signs hang outside buildings. Group of women and children wearing local costume stand outside house. Woman in the middle is doing embroidery.

The Wolseley 1500 saloon drives past painted buildings in the main street of Appenzell, Switzerland. C/U sign which reads "Kinderorf Pestalozzi". L/V the Pestalozzi village at Trogen. It is a beautiful village of traditional Alpine houses. Group of children playing. They have a seesaw and a slide. (The children are orphans and war casualties brought to live in Switzerland). Children on climbing frame. Children on slide. Children playing with football. Two boys give titbits to dog. Children play marbles in sandpit. Children climb metal poles.

High angle shot of roads, the Wolseley is driving along. This is the Schwagalp pass. The car drives past the foot of the Santis Suspension Railway. The Swiss flag is flying. The car drives past a car park. People sit outside cafe at tables with sunshades. Views of the cable car. View from the cable car as it ascends towards the top station. Views of the mountains and low clouds. Views from the cable car as it comes down.

The Wolseley overtakes a horse and cart. Views of Werdenberg from across water. Views of early Swiss wooden houses. Very pretty town. People walk the quiet streets. Some houses are decorated with texts and lettering. Flowers and wood carving are also on view. L/V of the town, at the top is the castle.

View from car as it travels along straight tree lined road. Long view of Chur. This is a large town. A clock tower is visible. Car drives through town, round flower covered traffic island. Car drives along road by the lakes of Lenzerhede.

The Wolseley 1500 driving through the Albula Pass, Switzerland. We can see views of Alpine mountains as the car travels the road. Some of the peaks are snow capped. High angle shot of car winding down twisty Alpine road. Car drives through small village of Samedan. A clock tower is seen in the background. The car pulls up outside the station "Muottas-Muraigl-Bahn". The passenger climbs out and walks inside.

Odd cable railway carriage carries passengers up the side of the mountain. View of the Engadin valley and the mountains which surround it. St Moritz can be seen. Car drives towards Pontressina, a white washed village nestled in a valley. Car drives past the Mortatsch Glacier (not much to see). The car pulls into a car park. Driver and passenger get out.

Aerial railway or cable car carrying passengers up. Point of view shot from cable car. Passengers wave. This is in the Bernina range of mountains. Group of people stand on mountainside. Views of the snow covered mountains.

Shot angled up - water rushing over rocks in foreground, car in the background. Pan across St Moritz. The lake can be seen. The car drives through St Moritz. High angle shot of the blue lakes "the jewels of the Engadin Valley". Car pulls up at roadside where a group of people are gathered. They are looking at marmots (funny looking little rodents). Woman feeds marmot. C/U marmot. Car passes along the road heading for the Maloja Pass.

Notes: Colour quite faded. Paperwork consists of a script. Reel 1 was originally reel 1 and 2. Can't find reels 3 and 4.