Biography of 'Glasgow Corporation'

Sponsor and producer

Between 1920 and 1978 Glasgow Corporation and various departments sponsored over 50 films. These films did more than instruct Glaswegians on how to be clean and healthy and become good citizens. They reminded Glaswegians – divided by class, politics and religion and ethnicity, that they all contributed to the making of a great city. Moreover they broadcasted the city’s pride in its assets and services and in the independence of its policies to nation and Empire. But above all they recorded the city – its people, buildings, streets and river, its industry and leisure, its power and decline – and its tendency to demolish and rebuild.

The Representation of the People Act of 1921 introducing universal suffrage gave the Corporation the means and the motive to sponsor films; addressing a local audience of recently enfranchised tax-paying citizens. The Corporation was amongst the first public institutions in Britain to make films explicitly for the education and entertainment of children. Almost always hiring Scottish film production companies (Thames and Clyde, Campbell Harper, Templar Films) the Corporation also played a part in the establishment of a film industry in Scotland. With few exceptions Corporation films always had a live introduction or commentary and were shown for free on council property such as schools, clinics, galleries and exhibition and the burgh hall.

From its initial position, in the silent era as ‘Second City of Empire’, to its final years in the 1970s as an institution, Corporation films projected the image of the Corporation as a leader of social and educational reform and as the guardian of a city which was represented as the site of repulsive slums, a vast public park, the beating heart of industrial Britain, the embodiment of modernity, and as an object of physical transformation and civic improvement.

[Extracted from the Sadness and Gladness exhibition catalogue. Introduction by Elizabeth Lebas for The Lighthouse, Glasgow, 2007]

Researcher: Lighthouse, Glasgow

Films associated with 'COCOZZA, Enrico'

47 hits

Asc Desc
	ANNUAL ART COMPETITION [2463] Add to my films Schoolchildren taking part in the annual art competition held in the Kelvingrove Museum, Glasgow.		1955 silent col
	AT SCHOOL IN THE CAIRNGORMS [3084] Add to my films Each year many Glasgow schoolchildren spend a month in the Cairngorms, at Glenmore Lodge, run by the Scottish Council of Physical Recreation. Instruction indoors is followed by outdoor training in map-reading and direction finding. Emphasis is laid on service to others, including first aid and mountain rescue work. Activities include skiing in winter, overnight expeditions in winter and summer, canoeing dinghy sailing, nature study, hand crafts and country dancing.	Onsite only	1958 sound col
	BATHING THE BABY [1346] Add to my films Illustrates how to bathe a baby correctly.		1938 silent bw
	CHILD WELFARE [1349] Add to my films The local authority's maternity and child welfare service in operation, showing the benefits to mother and child.		1938 silent bw
	CITY’S FARMS, the [1348] Add to my films Film showing the hygienic care taken of cows before and after milking at farms owned by Glasgow Corporation. Demonstrates the use of sterilising and pasteurisation to produce a "safe" milk supply for hospitals and tuberculosis sanatoria.		1940 silent bw
	CONSERVATION TRANSFER OF A DECAYED SUPPORT "ST. PETER REPENTANT" BY JOSEPH RIBERA [9926] Add to my films A record of the conservation work done on the painting "St Peter Repentant" by Joseph Ribera, part of the Glasgow Museums collection.	Onsite only	1959 mute col
	COUNTRY HOMES [1345] Add to my films How "country homes" for needy children were run, recounted through one child's experience.	Onsite only	1938 silent bw
	EDUCATION AT YOUR SERVICE [5636] Add to my films Overview of the educational facilities provided for children of Glasgow at primary, secondary and specialist schools in the city.		1954 sound bw
	GLASGOW - OUR CITY [0062] Add to my films Glasgow old and new, with shots of contemporary street life and local industries. The film is interspersed with illustrations of 17th and 18th century Glasgow.		1949 silent bw
	GLASGOW 1980 [0974] Add to my films A documentary on how Glasgow would look in the 1980's after the redevelopment of its traffic system and the construction of new housing developments, planned in the mid '70s. Relates to issues proposed in the Bruce Report 1945 - a plan for the complete deconstruction of the existing Victorian city centre in order to create an new 'healthy and beautiful city’ of modern architecture.		1971 sound col
	GLASGOW TAKES CARE OF ITS OLD FOLK [0135] Add to my films How Glasgow takes care of its old people through the provision of Old Folks' Homes, including Forest Hall, Crookston Home, and Woodburn Home.		1959 sound bw
	GLASGOW TODAY AND TOMORROW [3158] Add to my films Glasgow in the post-war years and the Corporation's futuristic plans for the city's development. [The film was made to tie in with an exhibition of the same title, held at the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow.] Relates to issues proposed in the Bruce Report 1945 - a plan for the complete deconstruction of the existing Victorian city centre in order to create a new 'healthy and beautiful city’ of modern architecture.		1949 sound bw
	GLASGOW'S FESTIVAL OF FELLOWSHIP [0257] Add to my films The Official Film of the Coronation Celebrations organised by the Corporation of Glasgow. One of three reels only. School children and pensioners on a day trip by steamer to Ardgoil, as part of Glasgow's celebrations for coronation year.		1937 sound bw
	GLASGOW'S HOUSING PROBLEM AND ITS SOLUTION [0844] Add to my films Plans for building new housing in Glasgow and encouraging skilled tradesmen to return to working at their old trades on building sites.		1919 silent bw
	GLASGOW'S PROGRESS [1497] Add to my films Rushes from an unfinished production intended as a sequel to GLASGOW 1980. [See also ref. 0974].		1978 mute col
	HEALTH OF A CITY [2241] Add to my films Made to commemorate the centenary of the appointment of the first Medical Officer of Health for Glasgow, it highlights their work in housing, schools and hospitals.		1965 sound bw
	HOW OUR CITY IS GOVERNED [0315] Add to my films Local Government election procedure and Glasgow Corporation committees in session.		1949 silent bw
	IF ONLY WE HAD THE SPACE [2101] Add to my films Made to demonstrate how improvements to Glasgow city tenements could be made with the aid of Home Improvement Grants.		1974 sound col
	KEEPING OUR CITY CLEAN [0420] Add to my films The work of the Cleansing Department in Glasgow.		1949 silent bw
	LEADED LIGHTS [2160] Add to my films The various stages in the assembly of pieces of coloured glass into a door or window pane, the application of lead moulding and polishing with blacklead.	Onsite only	1936 silent bw
	MUNGO'S MEDALS [2102] Add to my films An illustration of the efforts made to rehouse families from sub-standard tenement flats in Glasgow, and to alleviate the housing shortage in the city.		1961 sound col
	OUR ART GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS [0397] Add to my films A tour through various exhibitions in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.		1949 silent bw
	OUR CITY - TODAY AND TOMORROW [0526] Add to my films The city of Glasgow in the 1940s - its buildings, parks, museum, university and housing, showing the plans for major re-development of the city. Relates to issues proposed in the Bruce Report 1945 - a plan for the complete deconstruction of the existing Victorian city centre in order to create an new 'healthy and beautiful city’ of modern architecture.		1949 silent bw
	OUR HEALTH SERVICES [0331] Add to my films Describes the main requirements for a healthy city through its hospital care and public health.		1949 silent bw
	OUR HOMES [0317] Add to my films Traces the progress of corporation housing in Glasgow from tenement homes to metal-framed buildings and the models for high-rise flats.		1949 silent bw
	OUR POLICE [0997] Add to my films An illustration of the Police Force in action from patrolling the beat to catching a thief. The film also describes modern methods of crime detection.		1948 silent bw
	OUR PUBLIC PARKS [0300] Add to my films How Glasgow's public parks bring the countryside to industrial Glasgow, providing city workers with fresh air and exercise.		1949 silent bw
	OUR SCHOOLS [0316] Add to my films The education provided by the schools and colleges of Glasgow.		1948 silent bw
	OUR TRANSPORT SERVICES [0057] Add to my films The story of Glasgow Municipal Transport System from hansom cabs to trams and buses.		1949 silent bw
	OUR WATER SUPPLY [0396] Add to my films The story of Glasgow's water supply from the reservoir at Loch Arklet to the work of the Water Department of Glasgow.		1949 silent bw
	PASTEURISED MILK [1344] Add to my films The transport, pasteurisation and testing of milk for public consumption.		1938 silent bw
	PIGS [2163] Add to my films One of the Carrick Classroom Series, the film shows pigs in a farmyard being fed, rounded up and driven into their sty.		1936 silent bw
	PLAY CENTRES [0477] Add to my films Recreational pursuits enjoyed by children at youth centres and summer camps for secondary school children.		1949 silent bw
	PORT HEALTH AUTHORITY FOR THE CITY OF GLASGOW [1745] Add to my films Demonstration of the role of the Port Health Authority and the work it undertakes from the supervision of food imports to the inspection of ships' holds for rats.		1930 silent bw
	PROGRESS REPORT [0268] Add to my films A survey of Municipal Housing Activity in Glasgow. New council housing at Knightswood, Cranhill, Pollok and Tollcross.		1946 sound bw
	PROGRESS REPORT NO. 2 [0922] Add to my films Progress report regarding new Pollok housing estate on the outskirts of Glasgow. The contrast between new semi-detached houses and older tenements is illustrated.	Full length available onsite	1948 sound bw
	SADNESS AND GLADNESS [0705] Add to my films Jeannie and Mattie are accepted for a seaside holiday camp. One of a series of fund-raising films produced in aid of the Necessitous Children's Holiday Camp Fund.		1928 silent bw
	SAILING 1000 MILES UP THE AMAZON [0419] Add to my films A study of Northern Brazil and the course of the Amazon river filmed during 1935.	Onsite only	1936 silent bw
	SAWMILL IN THE FOREST, the [2168] Add to my films Shots of men felling trees and transporting logs by horse to a small sawmill, where the timber is cut into lengths.		1938 silent bw
	SCOTTISH INDUSTRIES EXHIBITION 1959 [4289] Add to my films The Scottish Industries Exhibition held at Kelvin Hall in Glasgow. Exhibiting companies display their products in brightly lit, colourful stands which often give as much emphasis to design as to their product. See also: ref {1109}, the 1959 SCOTTISH INDUSTRIES EXHIBITION.	Onsite only	1959 silent col
	STOBHILL HOSPITAL: The Story of a Modern Hospital [1347] Add to my films The work of a modern hospital with shots 'behind the scenes' showing the kitchens, dispensary, telephone switchboard and nurses relaxing off-duty.	Full length available onsite	1938 silent bw
	SUNNY DAYS [0893] Add to my films One of the films annually made to raise money for the Glasgow Necessitous Children's Holiday Camp Fund showing Glasgow children enjoying holidays by the sea.		1931 sound bw
	TAM TRAUCHLE'S TROUBLES [0253] Add to my films One of a series of films produced for the Glasgow Necessitous Children's Holiday Camp Fund, it promotes the benefits of the Holiday Camp to children and parents alike.		1934 sound bw
	VITAL STATISTICS [1979] Add to my films Some of the work of the Public Health Department, including the checking of imported foodstuffs, sanitary inspection of housing, hospital care and child welfare.		1940 silent bw
	WATER WHEEL, the [2170] Add to my films A water wheel is shown in operation.		1938 silent bw
	WINSTON CHURCHILL VISITS ABERDEEN [2797] Add to my films Winston Churchill, accompanied by his wife and daughter plant a tree in the home of Sir Thomas and Lady Jaffrey and the University of Aberdeen confers on him the Honorary Degree of LLD. [See also refs. 4025 and 4563].		1946 silent bw
	YOUTH CENTRES [0478] Add to my films The various activities on offer in Glasgow youth centres such as woodwork, sewing, acting and gymnastics.		1949 silent bw