Aerial Pictures of Selo Photographic Film Factory

Aerial footage of the SELO film factory and the nearby town of Brentwood and surrounding areas.

Two crew members, in 1930s style flying gear, climb into a biplane, registered to 'Hillman's Airways' as G-ABCW, which subsequently takes off from an airfield (Avian and Robinson Redwing). There are various aerial shots of the SELO factory and the surrounding landscape, including a panoramic long shot of the complex and a directly overhead shot. The word 'SELO' can be read from the ground below. The camera then focuses on train tracks, and then back on a more distant shot of the factory. Next up is a major road with a roundabout, and sparse traffic, before we move onto large suburban homes with big gardens, then smaller, more crowded homes in street grids. There is also what looks like a sports stadium at the top left of the screen. The plane flies over fields before there is a close up shot of another biplane, registration number G-ABMV. Finally the plane lands and the camera films the crew disembarking and chatting to each other.

Featured Buildings

SELO Photographic Film Factory

Keywords

Aerial photography; Aircraft; Factories

Intertitles

High up in the Film World

Other Places

Brentwood

Background Information

INFORMATION ON SCENES IN THE FILM KINDLY SUPPLIED BY KELVIN ORROWE IN MARCH 2021 From local knowledge and research using 1920’s OS maps I have managed to piece together and identify the locations within this wonderful film. Many of which still exist. Takes off from Maylands Airfield on Colchester Road A12 in the back ground are the houses in Woodstock Avenue and Kenilworth Avenue (still there).Takes off in easterly direction. After filming the SELO works at Woodman Road, heads towards Brentwood railway station filming from the north it shows Victoria Road and the railway sidings just picks up the Gasometer bottom right in an early frame, then south to show Junction Road joining Warley Hill then back north to Crescent and Victoria Roads again. Then heads west probably following the Colchester Road or railway because it passes Maylands just to the south of the Colchester Road filming Ingereway, Greenway and Home Way (rows of houses still there) to the south of Colchester road with Woodstock Ave and Kenilworth Ave again to the north (right of picture). The Roundabout is Gallows Corner.Still there but bigger. The flight then heads south and films Warwick gardens (which is the cul de sac with a circular banjo hammerhead) to the right of this is the Royal Liberty School which was founded in 1921 on the site of Hare Hall Still there. The camera then pans southwards towards Squirrels Heath. and the Gidea park railway station. The flight turns north towards Gidea Park to film Elm Walk Broadway and on the left Gidea Close (tennis Courts) and in the distance is Petits Lane. The remains of Hare Hall demolished two years earlier in 1930 can be seen. The flight then heads south and films Romford Station from the north picking up the curving Hornchurch road to the south of the station and to the right on the film is the river Rom. The flight then heads towards Seven Kings Railway station filming the terraced housing from the north on the right is Aldborough Road, then Norfolk Road, Elgin Road and finally Cambridge Road. From here the flight heads north west towards Valentine Park filming Quebec, Montreal and Perth Roads, the Lido can be seen in Valentines Park. From here the flight heads southwards filming again from the north the roads to the north of Ilford station which is finally picked up in the top of the picture, the roads shown are the A123, Mansfield Road Argyle Road and Belgrave Road. What appears to be a bowling green in the beginning of this sequence has gone. The flight then turns north filming the triangular junction which is Belgrave Road and Wanstead Park Road to the left (west) is now the A 406. Then the camera is turned north to pick up the junctions of Highlands Gardens and Clarendon Gardens then swivels to the left (west) and just picks up Canterbury Avenue as the shot changes. Then flight then heads south again and films towards the south of Ilford station picking up the A123 and to the right on the film is Riverdene Road and further west is the river Roding. The film then goes straight back to Maylands, filming from the east with Colchester Road dissecting the first frame. When the aeroplane moves to the south and films north it picks up Maylands Farm and buildings then as the pilot and colleague disembark in the back ground can be seen traffic on the Colchester Road. To the east of Maylands is now the M25 however part of the field where the plane flies from is still there. INFORMATION ABOUT HILLMAN'S AIRWAYS Hillman's Airways was a 1930s British airline that later became part of British Airways. The company was formed in November 1931 as Hillman's Saloon Coaches and Airways Limited by Edward Henry Hillman who was a coach operator in Essex. His previous business had been sold to London Transport following a change in government rules on the expansion of bus routes. The airline's first service was a charter flight on 25 December 1931. It started a scheduled service on 1 April 1932 between Romford and Clacton using a de Havilland Puss Moth and a de Havilland Fox Moth; with a fare of £1 return it was operated every three hours due to the popularity. A de Havilland Dragon was bought to operate an international service between Romford and Paris Le Bourget. From 1 December 1934 the airline was given a contract to fly air mail between London, Liverpool, Glasgow and Belfast formerly operated by the Railway Air Services. Following the award of the contract Hillman changed the legal name from Hillman's Airways Limited to Edward Henry Hillman Limited and the airline extended its services to continental Europe, including Ostend and Brussels. On 1 June 1934 the airline moved its operating base to Stapleford Aerodrome. Just before Hillman died, on 31 December 1934, aged 45, the company became a public company, although within a year it had been merged with two other airlines to form British Airways. [Wikipedia]