Lazy Post No. 6: Fast Train to Brighton (x 3)

Stolen straight from YouTube this one I’m afraid…

Sixty years ago the BBC fixed a film camera to the front of the London to Brighton train and then compressed the resultant footage into a rather wonderful four minute short…

Thirty years later in 1983 they did it again, and then again this year…

Although it’s very quick, if you randomly press pause whilst the video is playing, it’s amazing to see how little seems to have changed in the intervening years: platforms, stations, bridges, even the hedgerows all seem to be much the same.

The only notable differences I can see, are the bright colours of the passengers clothes when the journey ends at Brighton Station (even compared to those of the Eighties) and the quality of the film stock (although again, the Eighties footage seems oddly inferior to that from the Fifties)

Truly fascinating…

It’s good to hear the Chem’s Star Guitar track again. Chosen I would guess because of Michel Gondry’s wonderful train ride video with the different elements of the scenery zooming past the window, brilliantly playing the beats, rhythm’s and instrumentation of the tune…