GB 1950 1hr 35mins Dir: Ralph Thomas Starring: Trevor Howard and Jean Simmons
A former secret service agent takes a job tending a butterfly collection only to be involved in murder
There is a short scene in this mystery film with Trevor Howard and Jean Simmons meeting on the ‘King’s Cross platform’ at Holborn (Kingsway). Although it certainly appears to be a real station, the tiling design does not match either the Piccadilly or Central Line platforms at Holborn. The exact identity of the station is therefore not known. There are shots of Newcastle Central station and a scene in St Nicholas Street looking down towards the castle. In the hazy background, an ex-NER Tyneside EMU passes over the bridge on its way out of the station. There are brief scenes shot at Liverpool Lime Street station with ex-LMS coaching stock visible which includes a close-up image of an express arriving from London Euston, and the film’s exciting climax is shot in Liverpool Docks. A Liverpool Overhead Railway EMU is filmed arriving at Gladstone Dock station and the stairs to Brocklebank Dock station are also visible in the background of one scene. A good number of Mersey Docks & Harbour Board 0-4-0 and 0-6-0ST locos are present with MD&HB 0-6-0ST No.4 featuring prominently. Finally, there is a very brief glimpse of a passing tram in the earlier Liverpool street scenes, working route 6A (Pier Head to Bowring Park).