British Rail Journeys - Central Highlands DVD

Advantages: Interesting look back on road haulage in the 1950s
Disadvantages: Not really any

...on the wheel symbol, also used on British rail trains. This is the (probably highly fictionalised!) account of how a 137 foot long distillation column was taken by road all the way from the manufacturers in Greenwich, South of London, all the way to the oil cracking plant that it was destined for in Grangemouth, in the north east, a distance of some 500 miles. When one considers that the drivers and crews (headed by Mr Skipp) had no motorways to use, and that the top speed of the two Scammell tractor units (remember them?) with the load was only 10 to 12 miles per hour, it is no wonder that it took them two weeks to complete the journey! The scenery of this film (in black and white) was interesting, as it shows a slice of life that is now long gone. Trams in London, police escorts for heavy or long loads, the interested crowds wearing sensible... Read review

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Advantages: Original unseen footage
Disadvantages: Poor quality production

...British team in the 1950s and 1960s is exactly what it says. British Steam in the 1950s and 1960s. It has to be said that the music chosen is not particularly good library music and that the titles seem to be rather low quality and amateurish. The quality of the sound of the narrator is very poor, being both muddy and rather faint. However, the programme rather redeems itself by showing uncut amateur footage form all four regions of British Rail during the 1950s and 1960s. Am I biased because the programme starts at Snow Hill Station in Birmingham, the station where my Dad used to take me every Sunday to see the trains? Yes! Of course I am! The programme then features Clapham Junction (interesting to see a tank engine juxtaposed with a diesel electric locomotive. Whatever happened to the diesel electrics? Other locomotives seen... Read review

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Advantages: Adrian Paul is superb in it , good effects, original moments
Disadvantages: Continuity errors, weak moments.

...Adrian Paul, star of the Highlander TV series, and Christopher Lambert, star of the original (3) Highlander films (not to mention an appearance in the aforementioned series and films like Greystoke, Subway and that awful chess thriller) team up for the fourth Highlander film, Highlander-Endgame, a film that, like its predecessors, totally ignores any continuity issues from previous films or series and gets down to the deep voices, trenchcoats and swordfights straight away. Now, I like the Highlander films, (although the renegade cut of Highlander 2 where they miss out a lot of the sci-fi nonsense is a lot better) and I loved the TV series (although only series 1 and 2 have ever been shown on terrestrial British TV and I still eagerly await series 3 to 6), but this film flopped in the States and only got a video release over here. Also... Read review

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