GB 1955 1hr 36mins Dir: Carol Reed Starring: Celia Johnson and David Kossoff
In the busy wholesale-retail world of London’s East End everyone, it seems, has unattainable dreams
Some scenes in this quite tragic family drama were filmed around Vallence Road in Bethnal Green, and visible in some shots are viaduct arches with a signal box above. There are also some semi-distant shots of EMU’s passing St. Paul’s Cathedral and although the trains are real, St. Paul’s formed part of a matted backcloth so the exact location is unclear. The screenplay was adapted by Wolf Mankowitz from his own 1953 novel of the same name.
In this view from Vallence Road in Bethnal Green a signal box can be seen perched quite precariously on the viaduct behind Joseph Tomelty
Looking out of the family premises there is a view of St. Paul’s Cathedral. An EMU is crossing the railway viaduct immediately to the left of Jonathan Ashmore’s head but the dome of the Cathedral is a matted backdrop so it is not clear entirely how much of this is real. As far as I know the only line with a view of St Paul’s is that running into Blackfriars and Holborn Viaduct but mostly with a restricted view. Even after the wartime bombing, it would be difficult to say where the back projection was shot from.
Although this is a lot less clearer, another train can be seen crossing the viaduct in this second shot
