Liverpool, Merseyside.
C/U of an Italian crossbowmen flag reading 'Balestrieri Sansepolcro' and fluttering in the wind; 'Balestrieri' means 'Bowmen'; Sansepolcro is the name of the city the bowmen come from. M/S of men and women in medieval costume walking in front of a line of Italian crossbowmen...
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Liverpool, Merseyside.
C/U of an Italian crossbowmen flag reading 'Balestrieri Sansepolcro' and fluttering in the wind; 'Balestrieri' means 'Bowmen'; Sansepolcro is the name of the city the bowmen come from. M/S of men and women in medieval costume walking in front of a line of Italian crossbowmen who are wearing medieval tabards, tights and chain mail jumpers. Various shots of the Italians examining their crossbows before the match which seems to be taking place in a playing field.
M/S of their English opponents, (who look like they are dressed for a cricket match) examining their crossbows; they are the Bowmen of Bury Hill from Mansfield in Nottingham. Various shots of the Italians winding up one of their crossbows, ready for a shot. A bald-headed man, Luigi Batti, takes a shot from the bow which is held on a wooden contraption; the dart goes into a black and white circular board.
One of the English team, Les Bakewell, is seen taking a shot; he rests the bow on his shoulder; the Marquis Luigi Giovagnoli watches carefully. M/S of the arrow going into a large woven-straw target.
More shots of bowmen taking their turns. A man in a monk costume, Alessanoro Mellini, and Luigi Batti both have a go with one of the English team's bows. Luigi Batti is then seen pulling a dart bolt from the black and white board with a modern pair of pliers; he looks a bit like Mussolini.
Note: notes on file say this visit to Liverpool by the Italians was to promote Anglo-Italian goodwill. See also CP 279 - Italian Pageant for more Italians in medieval dress in Liverpool. Also on file is a small leaflet about the town of Sansepolcro in Arezzo.
Cuts exist - see separate record.
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