Flintknapping Interviews

Ralph Tuck interviews Herbert Edwards about his specific job as a flint knapper.

The film opens with a shot of Brandon Town Centre. There is a shot of the Flint Knappers Public House. Ralph Tuck interviews Mr. Herbert Edwards at the back of the Flint Knappers. There are piles of flints in the background. Mr. Edwards explains that he employs three knappers; that flints are used produced for muzzle loading guns and for facing churches. Mr. Edwards points out that in Napoleonic times a hundred flint knappers were employed at Brandon. He describes how the job is done with demonstrations from the knappers. First a gun flint is made, 60,000 a month are being exported to Nigeria. There are other markets in muzzle loading chips around the world. For building purposes dressed flints are made in specific shapes, square, round, diamond or, for facing churches, random. Some examples are shown. Mr. Edwards talks about the sources of flints and expresses confidence that an industry that has lasted thousands of years will last for thousands more

Featured Buildings

The Flint Knappers Public House

Keywords

Brandon; flint; Herbert Edwards; Ralph Tuck

Other Places

Brandon

Background Information

Mr. Herbert Edwards appears in other films in the Archive's collection. (See Ref. below.) He died in 1973, aged 82. The Edwards family claimed to have knapped flints in Brandon for 300 years. Their claims have been authenticated to the eighteenth century, beginning with Francis Edwards. After Herbert Edward's death, his son-in-law, Mr. James English, continued the family business. He was helped on a part time basis by Mr. Fred Avery. (See also Brandon, Suffolk. The Flintknappers. 1949.) The BBC began broadcasting a nightly television news programme from St. Catherines House on 5th October, 1959. In December 1960, they began a fortnightly programme under the title Outlook. This was a section of the first programme of the series, produced by Malcolm Freegard, the first television producer at BBC East. Also included in this programme were interviews with George Bulton, a warriner, and with General Talbot, regarding the Stanford battleground. The programme also included a short item by Paul Jennings about the origins of Piccadilly Corner, Alburgh, Norfolk. (See Refs. below.)