Tideswell, Derbyshire Retro Film
Showing its limestone hills, its church and buildings, and the locals who work in the quarry.
NOTE: This film has a French soundtrack.
Details
Release year 1944 Director A. Reginald Dobson Production company G.B. Instructional CinematographerJack Parker Running time (minutes)09 mins 46 secs SupervisorG.J. Cons
Original Description
‘This film describes an upland settlement, Tideswell in the Derbyshire hills. Tideswell is built of local limestone, and many of its inhabitants work in neighbouring stone quarries. A hillside stream supplies power for the mills. Farms are mixed, but there is less arable land than pasture; sheep and cattle thrive on the upland pasture.’
(Films of Britain – British Council Film Department Catalogue – 1946)
Trivia
The quarry featured in the film is now the Miller’s Dale Quarry nature reserve.
Working titles for the film included ‘Upland Settlement’ or ‘Upland Village’, in keeping with other films in the ‘Human Geography’ series, such as Lowland Village and Coastal Village.
Some of the scenes may have been shot in hope or Bradwell, not all of it was Tideswell
Transcript
Where we commonly see two layers like this, and everywhere we look, shades of grey seem to age the area. In this valley, there isn’t much water in the mountains, but there are streams flowing through it. There are bridges built here and there. One particular bridge is formed from a large stone that has been carved. Here is another bridge, also made of stone. Now, it passes through the street of the village. You can see the stone, metal, and various water sources.
A long time ago, people settled near these resources, and gradually, a village emerged. Now let’s look at the map of this mountainous region. You’ll see springs and a stream flowing down the valley to feed into the river. Near the springs are villages built in places where accessing water was easy. Close to the river, a mill was constructed. Look closer at the map showing a mountain village: it has parallel streets, and here is the church. The village grew near the springs, and the houses were built with the most easily available materials — limestone from the local area.
The village is situated over 300 metres above sea level. The houses are constructed from limestone, heavy wooden beams, and stone walls. In winter, the village is isolated after heavy snowfalls, but in summer, the houses bask in the sunlight. This church was built with stone 300 years ago, and its beauty has wonderfully withstood the test of time. Above some of these doors, you’ll find beautiful carvings made from stone by famous local craftsmen, whose descendants continue the tradition even today. Centuries of work have shaped this place. The mill here was powered by the fast-moving water of the stream, and though it’s no longer in use, the water remains a source of energy for modern industries.
Nearby are farms producing crops and raising sheep. Grazing dominates the landscape, as the stony soil favours livestock farming rather than agriculture. Cattle need access to water, so farmers have dug artificial ponds, generously fed by natural springs. Twice a day, cows are taken to the farm for milking. All the farm buildings are made of stone, and the field walls are stone as well. These walls are often knocked over by wandering animals, and a skilled labourer is needed to repair the damage. They rebuild the walls piece by piece, like a patient puzzle. It may look easy, but it takes years of experience to construct a wall like this — a classic example of craftsmanship in this stony country.
In this region of limestone, there are large quarries employing many men from the local villages. Their daily work involves extracting stone from the mountain. Massive quantities of stone are removed here. You can see how a single large explosive charge can loosen up to 90,000 tonnes. Let’s look at this again in slow motion: notice how the explosion tears the stone from the base while the top rises before collapsing and breaking apart. When such vast amounts of stone are subjected to this treatment, large blocks remain to be broken by hand. Deep holes are drilled into the stone, and explosive charges are placed in these holes. Once everything is ready, a red flag is raised, and an alert is sounded to allow all workers to take shelter. The person lighting the fuses must quickly retreat to safety, often running to reach the shelter in time. The broken stone is processed and prepared for various uses across many industries. Here is limestone being transported for multiple industrial applications. These wagons are loaded with raw limestone, which is used in large quantities, especially in the iron and steel industries.
The limestone is transported by railway over this stone viaduct. However, the only connection between villages remains the road. After their day working in the fresh mountain air, workers prepare their evening meals in this mountain community. The settlement, which has become a centre of agriculture and industry, is a village built from the very stone of the mountain it sits upon.
