Violent Playground

Hi John,
After some internet 'detective work' I can say that Liverpool has never had a trolleybus system. Therefore the final scenes in the film must have been shot in London due to the 'walk on part' by a London trolleybus.

OK

Scrutinisation of my 1959 Central London Bus Map tells me that this trolleybus would have most probably been running on one of the following routes:
661, 663 (Mile End Road)
567, 569, 665 (Commercial Road)

That's what we like............a bit of dedication


677 (Burdette Road)
653 (Cambridge Heath Road)
These locations are around the Stepney area which you mentioned in your reply to me.

...............indeed I did, this should be somewhere in the blogs or message boards

"VIOLENT PLAYGROUND 1958
The exterior & interior scenes of the school and classrooms from this movie were not shot in Liverpool but London’s East-End. I'm not really sure why the school which is St Mary's & St. Micheals RC School in Stepney, London E1 wasn't credited? The School is on Commercial Road E1 and Sutton Street E1.
regards
Tony

ps. the interior shot with McCullun and the frightened kids was photographed in my classroom."


Without the location of the School I cannot narrow the options down to a particular route/routes!

................and now you've got it, down to the classroom! Not that many LT trollybuses ended up in class.
Every little helps!!

I shall attempt to copy the "Violent Playground" film for you - but I must mention that my copy is in ntsc format NOT pal (I have a multi-region dual system dvd player).

.............that really is kind of you, and if you want a copy of anything we've got in stock, please let me know.

I will email you again when I have succesfully made a dvd copy!

..........thanks Ray, most kind
Best wishes
John

New Films - May 06

Recently added to the Reel Streets website for your viewing pleasure...

Assignment Redhead
Bachelor of Hearts
Blythe Spirit
School for Scoundrels
Big Sleep
Battle of the Sexes
Thirty Nine Steps

The links are to the cut down pages, subscribers will have the privilege of viewing the full versions via the login page.

Violent Playground

Ray
Thanks for this.

Despite about a dozen other people all having a copy of this film, no-one was ever prepared, or able, to make me a copy. Can you do so, for either something I can swop with you, or for a £5.00 to cover your expenses. I cannot "buy" copied films.

If you want to abstract all the relevant locations, and send them in I can pay you a £10.00 fee when we publish.

If you can find any corresponding "now" locations, then we can pay you £10.00 each for these.

I have something that has been puzzling me for some time about the British film "Violent Playground".
It was made on location in Liverpool.......

................yes Gerrard Gardens

...except maybe for the final scenes?

..............don't know which scenes, because, as I said, there were many promises, but no action! There is a host of emails on the message board about this film

I have attached 2 screen shots from the final scenes and I was shocked to see what appears to be a 'foreign' visitor in the background!
As far as I know, Liverpool had no trolleybus system so I was surprised indeed to see a trolleybus glide by behind Peter Cushing. On closer inspection it appears to be a London trolleybus!
Maybe I'm wrong (and please tell me if I am!) but is it possible that that particular scene was shot in London?

Best regards, Ray Flight................Puzzled!

..........certainly part of the film was shot in London, in Stepney, a children's school. Don't know if they had trolly buses in the East End, but they certainly did in North London, where I grew up.

.........you see, from such tiny clues another can of worms opens up. Fascinating isn't it. Now we need a trolly bus expert!!!!!!

Thanks and best wishes

John Tunstill

Kim

Watched the film "Kim" yesterday afternoon, British India of the 1890's, with Errol Flynn & Dean Stockwell, made by MGM in the 1950's, good Boy's Own adventure based on Rudyard Kiplings book. Kipling lived in a house in London in Villiers Street, and this street appears in the film Callan, on our site.www.reelstreets.com. However the most interesting thing about Kim is, some 20 years ago in my Soldier Shop in Lambeth, London I bought a pair of statues, spelter, about a12" high, military in style, that, according to the lady who sold them to me, "Had been used in a film". But which film she didn't know.
Imagine the pleasure and surprise to see my statue on the headmaster's desk as I watched the film. Photo attached, oh, and by the way, the soldier site is www.soldierssoldiers.com, and the collection is housed in Italy in La Preghiera monastery, www.lapreghiera.com.
Should there be any property master out there missing a couple of statues from his inventory.............don't call me!

The Last Days of Dolwyn

The location of the scenes from "The Last Days of Dolwyn"

is the Lake Vyrnwy Dam in Powys, constructed in 1881-8 and resulting in the drowning of the village of Llanwddyn. See:

history.powys.org.uk/school1/llanfyllin/flooded.shtml

Co-ordinates N 52:45:43 W 3:27:24 (Ordnance Survey grid reference SJ018192)

Some views of the dam today:
---------------------------

http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/nrhenllys/lakevyrnwydam.JPG
http://www.99shadesofgrey.com/postcards/CRW_7608.jpg

http://www.cheshire.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/58F36C29-EF3F-41AC-9C83-BAD97147055F/0/vyrnwydamsweb.jpg

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/21111

http://www.larry-arnold.info/photography/Scenery/vyrnwydam.jpg

http://www.lowefoto.com/konica/wales10.jpg

http://www.spoon007.freeserve.co.uk/w/vyrnwy2.jpg

---------------------------

Best regards,

Kevin Flynn

Alfie

Alfie still no .8 is the north end of Earl's Court Road near the police station and opposite the petrol station which has just become a hole in the ground.

..............thats what I thought, but couldn't make it fit

I haven't subscribed to the site, but I guess you will know that the current DVD cover shot of Georgie Girl is taken on Maida Avenue, near the flat with the tall external stairway which is also used in the film (exterior and I think interior too).

..............yes, all the pics are on site, thens and nows. The staircase
belongs to a flat above a Chinese restaurant

You may wish to consult The Beatles' London for other locations.
ADAM SMITH

..............thanks for the tip, we'll blog your message
...........best wishes
..........John Tunstill

red hell drivers

hell drivers
The street scene featured on your web-page has trolleybus wires. If I remember correctly the scene opens with a trolleybus pulling up. If anyone can catch the number I should be able to tell you where it is. I favour it to be in West London not east, although of course I could be wrong,. But that route number would help!

Alan Thompson

For the Reel Streets Subscribers

Hi locations surfers,

You'll realise by now that this is a pay site, but for those of you who can't afford £10.00, because I'm a generous bloke, I still let you look at lots of pictures for free. Well we've got, in the pipeline, for your cinematic delectation:

FILM –ASSIGNMENT REDHEAD

Date, 1956; Location, London suburbs; Production Company, Butcher’s Film Productions ; Director, Maclean Rogers ; Actors, Danny Green, Richard Denning, Carole Matthews. Stills 30.

FILM – BATCHELOR OF HEARTS

Date, 1958; Location, Cambridge; Production Company, Rank / Independent Artists ; Director, Wolf Rilla; Actors, Hardy Kruger, Sylvia Syms, Eric Barker. Stills 90.

FILM – THE BIG SLEEP

Date, 1977; Location, London and Hertfordshire; Production Company, ITC / Elliott Kastner; Director, Michael Winner; Actors; Robert Mitchum, Sarah Miles, Edward Fox, Joan Collins, John Mills, James Stewart, Oliver Reed, Harry Andrews, Richard Todd, Colin Blakely. Stills 160.

And if you don't think that's worth a tenner.............well I don't know what more you want. Happy viewing

John Tunstill