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The South West Film & Television Archive contains a large collection of regional television programmes made by BBC South West, Westward Television and TSW – Television South West, featuring the local life and culture of the South West during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The Westward Television news feature 'The Cider Drinkers' shot in black and white looks at traditional cider making and focuses on a small rural cider press known as 'Will's Surgery'. The cider made there is referred to as ‘medicine’ and the cider press as ‘the surgery’ as the cider was claimed to cure anything "except a tampering wife". This film offers a funny and endearing portrayal of the local characters that made and drank the cider. The film shows how they used traditional methods, such as using straw as a filter, along with the gathering of men that accumulated at Wills Surgery to drink the cider, tell stories and sing folk songs. Another example from the Westward Television collection in the archive, featuring the people and traditions of the region, is the hour long documentary 'A Dartmoor Evening'” (1980) and the 1960s series, 'Maggies Moor'. 'A Dartmoor Evening' covers a live show in a small village hall and includes characters from the small and close knit community performing country dancing and folk music, story telling and reminiscences about village life. These programmes along with material such as Peter Kennedy's film 'Oss Oss Wee Oss', and Major Gill's films of country living highlight a disappearing rural way of life and cultural traditions that are a key part of regional social history. |
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