BMA world tour. Part 6.

UK, c.1935.

1 encoded moving image (16.50 min.) : silent, black and white

00:16:50

This film forms part of a group of films donated to the Wellcome Trust in 2006 by The British Medical Association.

This series of films (there are 6 in the collection) relate to the British Medical Association's Round the World Tour and Annual Meeting in Melbourne, 1935. The journey is also captured in a diary kept by Mrs. Katherine Harman which was acquired separately by the library (MS.7394) . The party travelled in style with the travel services arranged by Pickfords going by ship from Southampton to New York; across the USA via Washington, Chicago, Albuquerque, the Grand Canyon and Los Angeles to San Francisco; by ship to Hawaii, Fiji, Auckland (an excursion here to the Rotorua geothermal sites) and Sydney; by train to Melbourne and Canberra; by ship once more from Sydney to Brisbane, Macassar, Bali, Java (visiting Surabaya, Borobudur and Batavia (Djakarta)) and Singapore; by train to Kuala Lumpur and Penang; by sea again to Colombo, Bombay, Aden, Suez, Malta and Marseille; finally by train and ferry back to London.

Segment 1 This amateur film, which has been edited semi-professionally with additional intertitles and maps to orientate the viewer, consists of footage of the homeward journey by the party on SS Rajputana, P&O steamship from Penang to London. The party arrive at Colombo, Ceylon for a meeting of BMA members. There is a traditional performance of male dancers. In Bombay, an Indian snake charmer is seen in action. Venom is shown being extracted from a snake. The Bombay branch of the BMA greets the party; the meeting itself with the speeches is seen. The party bid farewell to their South African 'friends' (fellow passengers. A newspaper stand proclaims 'Italian Offensive Resumed'. Next stop; Aden. A seaplane flies overhead and there are lots harbour views. Travelling by road, there are donkey-drawn carts going the other way and more point of view shots of the road. The Tanks at Aden are shown. They next travel to the oasis and the salt works by car before entering the Suez canal. An overland party travels to Cairo. They travel past the Mena House Hotel, pyramids and Sphinx at Giza - some of the party are on camels. There are shots in the bazaar in Cairo, however, the exposure is quite poor and the image very grainy. There is a felucca on the Nile. Next, Port Said. End of Part 6 intertitle. Time start: 00:00:00:00 Time end: 00:16:50:00 Length: 00:16:50:00

Unrestricted

Public Domain Mark

Copyright previously held by British Medical Association and assigned to Wellcome in 2005