Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Mark Pritchard’s new film features footage from North West Film Archive

Footage from the North West Film Archive which was originally created by Manchester Met students is presented in a new film from Radiohead’s frontman Thom Yorke and musician Mark Pritchard and will be shown across cinemas internationally. 

To mark the launch of Yorke and Pritchard’s debut collaborative album Tall Tales, a theatrical film created by Australian visual artist Jonathan Zawada will be screened in cinemas on May 8 where fans can hear the new album before its release and watch the accompanying film which is described as ‘a fairy tale for the modern world’.

The Tall Tales film includes footage from the North West Film Archive’s Late Hope Street, an artistic film created by Manchester Met studentsin 1968 which illustrates the clearances of slums in the Beswick area of East Manchester, a significant moment in the city’s history.

Late Hope Street was created by students Martin Lightening and Roy Newton from Manchester School of Art – then known as Manchester Polytechnic – under the guidance of tutor Alan Murgatroyd and is an outstanding showcase of students work from this time. 

The beautifully shot black and white film opens with scenes showing the processes of slum clearances including mechanical diggers clearing rubble and people removing furniture from condemned houses. 

Children are shown playing amongst the rubble and playing football in a street while an elderly woman provides emotive commentary throughout the film describing the impact the destruction had on community spirit. 

Lightening, who created the film during his studies, said: “I’m surprised, astonished, and very pleased our film has been rediscovered after all this time. It was Roy Newton and myself’s first film made under the guidance of Alan Murgatroyd who was our tutor. Made on a shoestring with very basic equipment, all the simple elements came together well to make a quite moving film, and now a historical record. I’m looking forward to seeing how the new filmmakers have used the material.”

Geoff Senior, Access and Engagement Co-ordinator at the North West Film Archive, said: “Late Hope Street is a beautiful film, not only illustrating the processes of the slum clearances that many communities went through at the time but also giving voice to the feelings and concerns of the locals who were going through the process in the Beswick area of East Manchester close to where the Etihad Stadium is now. 

“The artistic use of the very grainy image only serves to highlight stark conditions the locals were living through and it is wonderful to see the images being given a new perspective in this new film and music project. The Archive is always looking to share its collections with new users and through imaginative ways to explore its material.”

Part of Manchester Met, the North West Film Archive is based within Manchester Central Library Archives+ partnership and is a specialist resource dedicated to saving and growing the region’s rich filmed history. 

From historical footage and home movies to newsreels and adverts, the NWFA preserves and shares over 60,000 items of film and video, for public, educational, and professional use. 

More information about Tall Tales and booking details for the screening events are available here.