MERCHANTS OF VENICE

Series

Series Name

Mining Review 17th Year

Issue

Issue No.

2

Date Released

Oct 1963

Length of issue (in feet)

895

Stories in this Issue:

1. 1STEAM UP!
2. 2COAL-CORER
3. 3MERCHANTS OF VENICE
4. 4LIDICE LIVES

Story

Story No. within this Issue

3 / 4

Summary

BFI synopsis: exports of British coal to Italy and its delivery to householders in Venice by canal
NCB Commentary - One of the attractions of going abroad is discovering how people carry out the everyday tasks we take so much for granted at home.
This is anthracite and it’s come a long way from the deep Welsh valley where it was mined.
It’s on its way to a customer - ‘down the road’ - or down the canal - for this is Venice, a city of lagoons and fabulous historic buildings - an endless delight for tourists lucky enough to go there.
But to Luigi and his mates this is no holiday - they have work to do.
To get about you take a water bus or vaporetto; or, in a mood of holiday abandon, a gondola. The gondoliers have superb navigational skill, plus a little dash, developed over centuries of plying the waters for hire.
But to them the romantic calling of their fellow-watermen is as a red bus to a London taxi-driver.
However, all share the beauties of their city, like the Ca’ Rezzonico housing a museu, of 18th century Venetian art. These paintings are by Tiepolo the Younger.
Here’s the first port of call for the coal merchants of Venice. Although it’s high summer, the stove is going and this householder is sensibly stocking up for winter ahead - and not a nubbin falls in the road - sorry, I mean ‘canal’ outside.
This delivery is one small part of the Coal Board’s target of 6 1/2 million tons of coal for export in 1963 to Scandinavia, Spain, Romania and S. America - among other countries - and to Italy and the quiet houses along the waterways of Venice.

Keywords

Mining; Scenery and travel; Fuels

Locations

Italy; Venice

Written sources

British Film Institute Databases   Used for synopsis
The British National Film Catalogue   Vol.1 1963, p.56
The National Archives COAL 32   /13 Scripts for Mining Review, 1960-1963

Credits:

Sponsor

National Coal Board

Production Co.

National Coal Board Film Unit