GB
1948
1hr 11mins
Dir: Alfred J Goulding
Starring: Don Stannard and George Ford
Dick Barton fights a plot to poison Britain’s water supply with cholera
This was the first of three films that Hammer Film Productions made about the popular British radio series, but it is the only one to feature railway material of any substance. There is a shot of a crossing keeper winding the gate wheel of a crossing keeper’s box that is then followed by a shot of an approaching freight train hauled by an unknown ex-Southern Railway loco running tender first. This is then followed by a scene filmed at a level crossing over which passes a coal train hauled by an ex-LMS Class 4F 0-6-0. Both the trains have been sped up for dramatic effect but it is unfortunate that the entire sequence has been filmed day for night, thus making most of the detail difficult to discern. The film was released in the US as Dick Barton, Detective, and was followed in the UK by Dick Barton at Bay. The last of the trio was Dick Barton Strikes Back which features some Blackpool trams – which see.
