Glimpse history through old images of Richmond upon Thames, London.
Queen Amelia’s Visit WW1
Sometime during the Great War, Queen Amelia of Portugal and the Lord Mayor of Richmond attended the local pageant.
Queen Amelia Of Portugal At Richmond (1914-1918) – British Pathé on YouTube
Horse Show 1922
The Duke of Connaught attended the Richmond Royal Horse Show in 1922, as did a pearly king and queen.
1922 Royal Horse Show in Richmond (1922)- British Pathé on YouTube
Boat Race 1927
Unfortunately you don’t get to see much of Richmond in this footage beyond the River Thames. But in a rare move, we are given film headshots and names of the Cambridge University rowers, many of them who won an Olympic gold medal at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.
They include G. Wynne Thomas, T. E. Letchworth, J.C. Holcroft, R. Beesly, L.V. Bevan, J.B. Bell, S.K. Tubbs, and the Honourable J.S. Maclay, all of whom look uncomfortable being asked to smile at the film camera.
On The Tideway – Richmond (1927) – British Pathé on YouTube
May Queen 1929
Little Miss Beryl Tomlin was crowned London’s May Queen in 1929. In this brief silent footage, she boards the ‘Mayflower’ on the banks of the River Thames, ready for the journey to Westminster.
Crowning London’s May Queen at Richmond (1929) – British Pathé on YouTube
Paint Factory Fire 1948
A paint factory caught fire in 1948. As firefighters battled for three hours to get the blaze under control, six of them were injured and had to be rushed to hospital.
Around Britain – Richmond (1948) – British Pathé on YouTube
Richmond 1956
Pat Moody was filmed practicing on the River Thames, having taken a kayak from the shed at Richmond Canoe Club.
Champion Girl Canoeist (1956) – British Pathé on YouTube
1960s Richmond
Silent 1960s images of the bridge, deer, church, and train bridge, with a few local homes.
Richmond (1961) – British Pathé on YouTube
1970s Protest
The 1970s news report about protests against the cut to Richmond’s education budget includes views across the skyline, interviews with local families and teachers, and residential several streets.
At the time, the local education authority here sent more children to university than any other in the country. It had a good ratio of staff to children.
Proposed changes meant children could no longer be sent to school at the age of 4, but had to wait until the term of their 5th birthday. There were also plans not to replace the 125 teachers expected to leave their jobs that year.
The council said that without the planned cuts they would have to raise rates by 65%, instead of by the 45% they were aiming for.
Richmond Protest (1970-1979) – British Pathé on YouTube
Around Richmond 1975
In 1975, Thames TV filmed the streets, homes, businesses, and open spaces around Richmond, for their series ‘A Place called…’
These five minutes of silent footage show a huge range of locations, with people going about their daily lives, or enjoying leisure activities on a pleasant summer’s day.
Vintage Richmond upon Thames | London | A Place called… | 1975 – ThamesTv on YouTube
Richmond Park in the 1980s
This Thames TV silent aerial footage is less than a minute long, but it shows Richmond Park, the River Thames, and the layout of the surrounding streets.
Richmond Park | Richmond upon Thames | 1980s London | Royal Park | Aerials | 1980s – ThamesTv on YouTube
