Flashes from far and near

Series

Series Name

Rhodesian Spotlight

Issue

Issue No.

45

Length of issue (in feet)

769

Stories in this Issue:

1. 1Harnessing The Shire River
2. 2Tales of the Tall Timber
3. 3Flashes from far and near

Story

Story No. within this Issue

3 / 3

Summary

Rhodesian Spotlight synopsis: Sir Roy Welensky lays the Foundation Stone of Broken Hill’s new Municipal Offices.
The Birchenough Bridge presents a repainting problem.
A shipment of large trucks hands for Kariba.
At Kariba, Lord Malvern pours the first concrete for the Main Dam wall.
Lord Malvern retires and his successor, Sir Roy Welensky, accepts office as Prime Minister.
Rhodesian Spotlight Commentary - Performing one of his last duties as Deputy Federal Prime Minister, Sir Roy Welensky arrives to lay the foundation stone of Broken Hill’s new Municipal offices. The honour is most fitting as Broken Hill is Sir Roy’s own constituency. Together with the foundation stone, a casket containing various items of interest was entombed to be opened a hundred years hence. The Municipal offices will form the nucleus of a new social centre. And so this ceremony marks a red letter day in the unfolding history of Broken Hill.
Over now to the Birchenough Bridge one of Southern Rhodesia’s engineering wonders, but we don’t suppose you’ve ever wondered what is entailed when it needs a coat of paint. The answer to that one is that it needs a lot of paint, and a great deal of nerve. If you like a spot of high lide here’s your opportunity. Mark you being the top dog isn’t very preferable to being the underdog in this topsy-turvey world. It’s a long way up but it might be shorter coming down. My paint pot and brush are going to stay locked up in the cupboard - that’s a certainty.
In Salisbury a group of 10 Trucks was getting ready for the last stage of their journey to Kariba. Shipped from America, they had been driven 1200 miles from Durban and still had 300 to go. Powered with 300 horsepower engines, they each weigh 22 tons and carry up to 20 cubic yards.
News from Kariba itself is that the first main coffer dam is completed and as the Minister of Power, Sir Malcolm Barrow confirmed, the project is ahead of schedule. Preliminary work has finally reached the stage where Lord Melvern could preside at a historical ceremony. This was the pouring of the first concrete in the wall of the main dam itself, the first of over a million cubic yards of concrete. The spot at which the ceremony took place will be 300 feet under water in about 4 years time. The mighty 80 million pound scheme is daily moving towards the fulfilment of the visions of greatness which Lord Malvern has long cherished for the Rhodesias.
Back in Salisbury Lord Malvern called a Press conference to announce his retirement from the office of Prime Minister - an office he has held longer than any man in the history of the world. As one of the great founders and architects of Federation, he seems well-content to hand over the reins to his successors. Without fuss or bother he walked out of the limelight leaving Rhodesia forever in his debt.
Assuming the leadership left by his colleagues, Sir Roy Welensky, another chief architect of Federation, signed the Oath of Allegiance, which was witnessed and accepted by the Acting Governor General Sir Robert Tredgold. At a time when the Federation stands at the crossroads, it is fortunate in having men of such ability and integrity at the helm. Long may it prosper under the guidance and leadership of its constitutionally elected Prime Minister.

Keywords

Politics and government; Buildings and structures; Transport; Ceremonies; Motor vehicles; Social welfare

Written sources

Movietone boxfile no.1   Used for synopsis

Credits:

Production Co.

Central African Film Unit

Length of story (in feet)

300

This series is held by:

Film Archive

Name

British Film Institute (BFI)

Email

For BFI National Archive enquiries:
nonfictioncurators@bfi.org.uk
For commercial/footage reuse enquiries:
footage.films@bfi.org.uk

Web

http://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web

Phone

020 7255 1444

Fax

020 7580 7503

Address

21 Stephen Street
London W1T 1LN

Notes

The BFI National Archive also preserves the original nitrate film copies of British Movietone News, British Paramount News, Empire News Bulletin, Gaumont British News, Gaumont Graphic, Gaumont Sound News and Universal News (the World War II years are covered by the Imperial War Museum).

Series held

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