Since 1946 the COI (Central Office of Information) has instructed the British public on health, safety and welfare issues—from the danger of accepting sweets from strangers to how to survive a nuclear explosion. Rooted in the traditions of the British Documentary Movement, the COI has long been a creative crucible for emerging film talent. This special programme marking the COI's sixtieth anniversary brings together some rarely seen highlights from the COI's founding years, the late 1940s, in new prints from the British Film Institute's National Archive.These films, screened to huge cinema audiences, aimed to put a war-weary nation back on its feet. Some remain surprisingly topical such as Worth the Risk? (a sardonic expose of dangerous drivers, cutting and swerving through the streets of post-war London) or Your Children's Meals (practical guidance for the parents of fussy eaters). Others reflect the particular preoccupations of those post-war years: The People at No. 19 is a mini noir thriller on the subject of venereal disease, while Richard Massingham's Pool of Contentment—on how to get the best out of the office typing pool—offers a comic glimpse of the 1940s workplace.Combining fictional and documentary approaches, these films provide an intriguing portrait of everyday life in 1940s Britain, recorded in atmospheric detail.
1946-50, color, 1 hour 25 minutes, UK