The Holmfirth Studios were an early British film studios that operated during the silent era. The studio was set up in the Yorkshire town of Holmfirth by the Bamforth Family firm, better known for producing postcards. The company released many shorts and a handful of feature films such as Paula , enjoying success before the First World War. In 1915 it was decided to shift production to the capital and a move to Clapham Studios followed, although the company's film venture was wound up soon afterwards. [1]
James Francis Cagney Jr. was an American actor and dancer. On stage and in film, he was known for his consistently energetic performances, distinctive vocal style, and deadpan comic timing. He won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances.
Last of the Summer Wine is a British sitcom set in Yorkshire created and written by Roy Clarke and originally broadcast by the BBC from 1973 to 2010. It premiered as an episode of Comedy Playhouse on 4 January 1973, and the first series of episodes followed on 12 November 1973. Alan J. W. Bell produced and directed all episodes of the show from late 1981 to 2010. The BBC confirmed on 2 June 2010 that Last of the Summer Wine would no longer be produced and the 31st series would be its last. Subsequently, the final episode was broadcast on 29 August 2010. Since its original release, all 295 episodes, comprising thirty-one series—including the pilot and all films and specials—have been released on DVD. Repeats of the show are broadcast in the UK on BBC One, Gold, Yesterday, and Drama. It is also seen in more than 25 countries, including various PBS stations in the United States and on VisionTV in Canada. With the exception of programmes relaunched after long hiatuses, Last of the Summer Wine is the longest-running TV comedy programme in Britain and the longest-running TV sitcom in the world.
Holmfirth is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. It is located 6 miles (9.7 km) south of Huddersfield and 14 miles (23 km) west of Barnsley; the boundary of the Peak District National Park is 2 miles (3.2 km) to the south-west. The town is sited on the A635 and A6024 roads in the Holme Valley, at the confluence of the River Holme and Ribble. It mostly consists of stone-built cottages nestled on the eastern slopes of the Pennine hills.
Elstree Studios is a generic term which can refer to several current and demolished British film studios and television studios based in or around the town of Borehamwood and village of Elstree in Hertfordshire, England. Production studios have been located in the area since 1914 when film production began there.
MGM-British was a subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer initially established at Denham Film Studios in 1936. It was in limbo during the Second World War; however, following the end of hostilities, a facility was acquired in Borehamwood, which remained in use until it was closed in 1970.
Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970 when it was absorbed into EMI. ABPC also owned approximately 500 cinemas in Britain by 1943, and in the 1950s and 60s owned a station on the ITV television network. The studio was partly owned by Warner Bros. from about 1940 until 1969; the American company also owned a stake in ABPC's distribution arm, Warner-Pathé, from 1958. It formed one half of a vertically integrated film industry duopoly in Britain with the Rank Organisation.
Richard Neville Hartley is an English composer, best known for his work on The Rocky Horror Show. He grew up in Holmfirth, West Yorkshire.
Bamforth & Co Ltd was a publishing, film and illustration company based in Holmfirth, West Yorkshire, England.
The Holmfirth branch line is a disused railway line that ran for 2 miles (3.2 km) from Brockholes to Holmfirth, in West Yorkshire, England. The line was built as double track as there were plans to extend the line up the Holme Valley.
Islington Studios, often known as Gainsborough Studios, were British film studios located on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, London between 1919 and 1949. The studios are closely associated with Gainsborough Pictures which was based there for most of the studios' history. During its existence Islington Studios worked closely with its sister Lime Grove Studios in Shepherd's Bush and many films were made partly at one studio and partly at the other. Amongst the films made at the studios were Alfred Hitchcock thrillers, Will Hay comedies and Gainsborough melodramas.
The British Actors Film Company was a British film production company that operated between 1916 and 1923 during the Silent era. It involved a consortium of prominent stage actors that included figures such as A.E. Matthews and Leslie Howard. The actors often exchanged their salaries for a share of the profits. Many of its films were made at Bushey Studios to the north of London.
Cricklewood Studios, also known as the Stoll Film Studios, were British film studios located in Cricklewood, London which operated from 1920 to 1938. Run by Sir Oswald Stoll as the principal base for his newly formed Stoll Pictures, which also operated Surbiton Studios, the studio was the largest in the British Isles at that time. It was later used for the production of "quota quickies". In 1938, the studios were sold off for non-film use.
Imperial Studios were the studios of the British and Dominions Film Corporation, a short-lived British film production company located at Imperial Place, Elstree Way, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire. The studios were active from 1929 to 1936, when they were destroyed by fire.
The White Star is a 1915 British silent drama film directed by Bertram Phillips and starring Queenie Thomas, Norman Howard and Arthur Walcott. It was made the Holmfirth Studios.
Paula is a 1915 British silent drama film directed by Cecil Birch and starring Hetty Payne and Frank McClellan. It was made at the Holmfirth Studios in Yorkshire. The screenplay concerns a widow who follows her love to Italy, and dies after donating blood to save his life.
The Clapham Studios were a British film studios of the silent and early sound eras, located in Clapham in London. The studios were built at Cranmer Court under some railway arches, opening in 1913. Several companies used the studios during their first decade, including Holmfirth Films. In 1927, it was used for one of the first British sound films when a short film was made using the DeForest Phonofilm sound system. By the late 1920s, usage of the studio had been abandoned, as producers moved to larger and more modern studios.
The Welsh-Pearson Company was a British film production and distribution company active during the silent and early sound eras. It was founded in 1918 by two pioneering film figures, George Pearson and Thomas Welsh, with the single-stage Craven Park Studios as their base. Because of the cramped conditions there, Welsh-Pearson had to use other studios such as Islington for larger scenes.
Broadwest or the Broadwest Film Company was a British film production company of the silent era. Its name it a portmanteau of its two founders, George Broadbridge and the film director Walter West. West took an active role in the company's productions, directing and producing many of the films. The company gained a reputation for producing films about horse racing, often based on popular novels such as those of Nathaniel Gould.
John Maxwell (1879–1940) was a British film producer. Maxwell was the co-owner of British International Pictures, which emerged as the largest British studio following the Film Act of 1927. Maxwell was a Scottish lawyer who first came into contact with the film industry in 1912. In 1927 he took over the newly constructed British National Studios in Elstree after its founders ran into financial problems. Maxwell built a vertically integrated company incorporating film production, film distribution, initially through Wardour Films, and a large network of cinemas that enabled the company to compete with the leading German and Hollywood firms. Along with the facilities in Elstree, the company also acquired Welwyn Studios in Welwyn Garden City.
Elstree Studios on Shenley Road, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire is a British film and television production centre operated by Elstree Film Studios Limited. One of several facilities historically referred to as Elstree Studios, the Shenley Road studios originally opened in 1925.