The Wrecker is a British play, written in 1924 by Arnold Ridley, who much later played Private Godfrey in Dad's Army.
The play is about an old engine driver who thinks his engine is malevolent and self-aware (cf. Christine). The finale is a huge train wreck using elaborate stage special-effects as per The Ghost Train, an earlier and more famous play by Ridley.
The play ran for 165 performances at St. Martin's Lane Theatre.
Film versions
It was made into a 74 minute silent film in 1928 (released 1929). The film was produced by Michael Balcon for Gainsborough Pictures, directed by Hungarian Géza von Bolváry and starring Carlyle Blackwell, Joseph Striker and Benita Hume. A sound track was later added. The crash scene was filmed at Herriard on the Basingstoke and Alton Light Railway. A set of SECR coaches and a SECR F1 Class locomotive no. A148 were released on an incline to collide into a Foden steam lorry.[1] The impact was recorded by 22 cameras and has been described as "the most spectacular rail crash in cinema history".[2]
The film has been restored, with a new musical score by the composer Neil Brand. On 26 November 2009 it will be launched at a special screening at the Watercress Line, a heritage railway close to where the filming took place.[2] The film was released on DVD in the UK on 16 November 2009.[3]
References
- ^ Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (1984). Branch Lines to Alton. Midhurst, West Sussex: Middleton Press. ISBN 0906520118.
- ^ a b Harper, Alison (25 November 2009). "1920s disaster movie restored". (with video footage). BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/8379500.stm. Retrieved 25 November 2009.
- ^ "The Wrecker" (DVD). 1928. http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Wrecker-DVD/dp/B002KAIVTK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1259182844&sr=1-1. Retrieved 25 November 2009.
External links
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