This footage is by George Pennington, the owner of Cosy Coaches in Meadowfield, documenting a folk dancing event organised by the Women’s Institute at Brancepeth. It is an amateur 16mm silent film, one of a collection often filming local social gatherings, bowling events and trips using his own coaches. The Women’s Institute was originally formed in Britain in 1915 during the war . It is a non-party-political, non-religious organisation that is open to women of all ages and classes .The...

This footage is by George Pennington, the owner of Cosy Coaches in Meadowfield, documenting a folk dancing event organised by the Women’s Institute at Brancepeth. It is an amateur 16mm silent film, one of a collection often filming local social gatherings, bowling events and trips using his own coaches.
The Women’s Institute was originally formed in Britain in 1915 during the war . It is a non-party-political, non-religious organisation that is open to women of all ages and classes .The organisation has known to be quite a progressive movement trying to gain awareness for issues such as single mothers, STI’s and alternative energy in the 1950s/60s. In 1954 the organisation had its highest ever membership of 467,000 which can show that this film was produced near the organisation’s height . To this day there are still Women’s Institutes however there is a misconception of a ‘frumpy image’ of just baking cakes and making jam, when in fact the organisation is becoming more modernised and providing women with a opportunity to join a tight-knit society of women to learn and share ideas.
During the 1950s life for women was extremely different to what it is now. It’s been seen as a very bleak time for feminism , as after the Second World War many wartime gains for women such as employment was lost once soldiers returned. Even when women did have jobs they earned less than men and educational opportunities were limited . Plus, through a big push in the media there was an emphasis on companionate marriages and the importance of a ‘nuclear family’ with the Cold War looming . This is the importance of a tight knit family with the mother in the centre doing all the housework to keep the family together. Public attitudes towards marriage stayed strongly conservative and attitudes such as these remained until the late 50s to early 60s.
The fashion in the 50s also arguably took a step back. During World War 2 clothing was restricted which resulted in women’s fashion becoming a slim, straight silhouette and they were able to wear comfortable clothing and trousers to work . It was a ‘make do and mend’ outlook . However, in the 50s Christian Dior created the ‘New Look’ where women’s fashion became luxurious and voluminous, with the figure once again putting emphasis on the hourglass figure, like in the mid-19th century . This look can be seen in this clip with a lot of the women having their dresses coming to about their mid calve and going in at the waist with the skirt billowing out.
The dancing seen in this film has a mixture of different folk dances. A folk dance is generally a type of dance that is vernacular, usually recreational, of an expression of a past or present culture . The folk music that is used was either written as a song or music for dancing and it has strong roots in the social history of England, whilst also giving an insight into agriculture, industry, and cultural diversity . Some of the type of folk dancing shown is Morris dancing and clog dancing. Morris dancing is a form of rhythmic stepping dance which is performed to traditional regional tunes. Often the dancers will wear costumes with colourful ribbons with small bells around their ankles for a percussive sound, which can be seen in the film . The history of clog dancing is more well-known. This traditional dance developed during the Industrial Revolution where wooden-soled shoes were preferred in the mills so the workers would tap their feet in time with the machines in order to keep their feet warm. Then, in the breaks they would have competitions to see who could make the best rhythmic patterns . Lastly, there is also the showing of Horn Dancing, which is an unusual dancing tradition that possibly dates back to the Middle Ages and typically takes place in Abbots Bromley, Staffordshire. It includes 12 dancers, six of which are carrying horns and they are accompanied by a musician, Maid Marian, the hobbyhorse, the fool, a youngster with a bow and arrow and another with a triangle .
Amateur films are ‘polished short works aimed at an audience of fellow amateurs and members of the public. ’In 1923 the 16mm silent film stock was introduced as a cheaper alternative and marked the beginning of new opportunities for ‘non-professional’ filmmakers who wished to record every-day life and events through their own home movie s. The amateur film making process was criticised originally by film critics however “this genre of film cinema still became a number one favourite in living rooms of every household ” and helps to give an insight into the ‘good old days’.
Interestingly, this film is in colour. The first film in colour was in 1895 by Thomas Edison with his hand-painted ‘Annabelle’s Dance’. This technique then developed into a stencil colour process which was introduced in 1905. By 1910 the film tinting and toning process was often used together to colour film. However, this film uses Kodachrome stock that was available in 16mm from 1935. It is also important to note that the majority of the public could not afford this type of film. Those who could afford film and the equipment from the 20s to the 40s were normally in the middle class. During the 50s more people from the middle classes could afford the equipment but it was still beyond the pocket of most. This demonstrates the social standing of the people who create these amateur films.
https://www.thewi.org.uk/about-us/history-of-the-wi
2 https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/17/womens-institute-uk-city-london
3 https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/17/womens-institute-uk-city-london
4 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism_in_the_United_Kingdom
5 https://www.historytoday.com/reviews/story-women-1950s
6 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism_in_the_United_Kingdom
7 https://vintagedancer.com/1950s/1950s-fashion-history/
8 https://vintagedancer.com/1950s/1950s-fashion-history/
9 https://vintagedancer.com/1950s/1950s-fashion-history/
10 https://www.britannica.com/art/folk-dance
11 https://musicworkshopcompany.wordpress.com/2015/04/27/english-folk-dance-swords-sticks-and-ribbons/
12 https://musicworkshopcompany.wordpress.com/2015/04/27/english-folk-dance-swords-sticks-and-ribbons/
13 https://musicworkshopcompany.wordpress.com/2015/04/27/english-folk-dance-swords-sticks-and-ribbons/
14 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbots_Bromley_Horn_Dance
15 https://www.filmtheory.org/amateur-cinema/
16 http://www.rutlandproductions.co.uk/history-cinefilm/
17 https://www.filmtheory.org/amateur-cinema/