London To Brighton (1963)

A story about the Pace-Setters walk from London to Brighton. It starts with a shot of someone with their foot up on the table as they drink beer, they put their foot down into a bowl of water. The narrator explains they have just completed the 52 mile walk which came about after President Kennedy challenged American businessmen to walk, and Britain thought they could do just as well. We see city gents agreeing to the challenge. Various shots of men and women at night as they wait to start the walk, a girl is handing out soup. Various shots of people walking. Shot of the Duke of Leinster clocking in at the 13 mile point. People have their feet looked at by medics. Other notable people taking part are MP Biggs-Davison and the Marquis of Bath. We see people at the halfway house recovering. In the morning two men walk down a snow covered lane, they are shaving, another man has an alarm to wake himself up in case he drops off while walking. Businessmen dictate letters to their secretaries who are driving alongside. Shot of David Copus walking along and Pathe cameraman David Allan filming everybody, there are various other Pathe staff taking part. We see the businessmen again taking drinks from the woman in the car, one man hooks his umbrella onto the back of another man's jacket and and gets pulled along on roller skates, other cheats include a man on a scooter and one on a pogo stick. There is a shot of two men in front of Brighton Pavilion, and people applauding the walkers as they go past, one woman is interviewed as she gets to the end. There is a shot of the beach where a man is eating pigs trotters. It ends with a man wearing just long johns and a bowler hat wading into the sea. Note: Pathe staff who took part - Richard Bartrum, David Docker, Roger Dunton, Eddie Collins, Terry Bailey and John Curry. Cuts exist - see separate record. FILM ID:223.02 FOR LICENSING ENQUIRIES VISIT http://www.britishpathe.com/