I SEE ICE

GB
1938
1hr 24mins
Dir: Anthony Kimmins
Starring: George Formby and Kay Walsh

The farcical adventures of a prop man with a touring ice ballet

This George Formby comedy classic is another of his films to feature good railway scenes, and although the carriage interiors and station shots are all studio sets, the ‘real’ footage is a pretty accurate account of an LMS journey. Despite the motive power changing quite a bit we get good glimpses of an ex-L&YR 2-4-2T and an LMS ‘Royal Scot’ Class 6P 4-6-0. Keep your eyes peeled on the ‘back projection’ screen in the carriage interior scenes and at one point an engine shed with a Stanier 2-6-4T shoots past. When George Formby pulls the communication cord there is a very good shot of LMS ‘Jubilee’ Class 5XP No.5553 Canada making a stop filmed specially for the production, a shot which also appears in The Love Match and Stop Press Girl (both qv). Quite a lot of other footage was actually taken for this scene, and it can all be found on Video 125’s Steam on 35mm DVD. There is also a shot of the original London Euston station. Indeed, the only non-LMS blip during these scenes is a couple of LNER Gresley coaches which appear during a shunting scene.