GB 1946 1hr 33mins Dir: Norman Walker Starring: Mervyn Johns and Olive Sloane
A factory owner’s family experiences financial gain and ruin after following the advice of a crooked financier
This drama wallows somewhat in its own self-pity, but it features Olive Sloane and some railway scenes. The former offers her profound beauty to proceedings whilst the latter are somewhat unclear. There is a good opening shot of the frontage to Nottingham Victoria station and though the platform departure scenes largely use a set, there are some additional shots filmed within the confines of the station. The locomotive that arrives is largely in shadow, but it appears to be an LNER B2 Class 4-6-0. In addition to this, there is a shot of an LNER service calling at Leicester Central station on the GCR main line, and a passing night shot of a passenger service in the hands of a small tender loco, possibly an Ivatt 4-4-2. It should also be mentioned that the scene onboard the train uses another studio set, and what appears to be a solitary steam locomotive tender passes by as part of the back-projection! The film was based on the 1934 novel of the same name by Dorothy Whipple. Did I tell you that it stars Olive Sloane?
This good overall view of Nottingham Victoria station actually appears twice in the film. Note the LNER VICTORIA STATION lettering on the clock tower.
The double stairway and signal gantry to the left suggest that this is a real station. More to the point, light and shade can not be recreated in such detail in the studio. This is part of Nottingham Victoria.
Forming part of the studio-bound station departure scene is this darkened shot of a train. Although there are scenes that were filmed at Nottingham Victoria, this appears to be a stock shot from somewhere else as the roof details do not seem to match those of Victoria station.
This shot of the platforms at Nottingham Victoria shows a train arriving that is possibly hauled by an LNER B2 Class 4-6-0 (or a GCR Class 1 in old money)! If this is the case then it is going to be quite rare as only six were built.
An LNER passenger service pulls into Leicester Central station
The final shot shows a train passing at night that is hauled by a small tender loco, possibly an Ivatt 4-4-2 if the cab profile is anything to go by
As Alfred Drayton and Mervyn Johns discuss their finances on the train journey, the back-projection that passes by seems to include a solitary steam locomotive tender!!
