''The Flying Scotsman'' is a 1929 British black and white part- silent film set on the '' Flying Scotsman'' train from London to Edinburgh, also featuring the famous locomotive LNER Class A3 4472 ''Flying Scotsman''. Directed by Castleton Knight, the thriller is chiefly remembered for being the first acting role of

Ray Milland Ray Milland (born Alfred Reginald Jones; 3 January 1907 – 10 March 1986) was a Welsh-American actor and film director. His screen career ran from 1929 to 1985. He is remembered for his Academy Award and Cannes Film Festival Award-winning ...

, as well as for its daring stunts performed aboard the moving train., URL accessed 23 June 2010

Synopsis

Engine driver Bob is due to retire from his job after years of distinguished service. On Bob's last day working aboard the famous '' Flying Scotsman'', a disgruntled fireman, dismissed after being reported for drinking at work, decides to get his revenge on Bob (who reported him to the company) by causing an accident. Meanwhile, the fireman's amorous young replacement has fallen in love with a beautiful girl, whose father, unbeknown to him, happens to be Bob (and who has also boarded the train in an attempt to stop the villain).

Plot

The film is notable for being the first lead role of Welsh actor Ray Milland, who went on to stardom in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

during the 1940s. Milland, then appearing under his birth name of Alfred Jones, was spotted by director Castleton Knight while he was working as an extra on '' The Informer'' which was being shot on a neighbouring stage. Milland, in his autobiography, recalls that it was on this film that it was suggested he adopt his stage name; and chose Milland from the ''Mill lands'' area of his Welsh home town of Neath. Milland starred in two further Knight-directed films, ''

The Lady from the Sea ''The Lady from the Sea'' ( no, Fruen fra havet, link=no) is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen inspired by the ballad '' Agnete og Havmanden''. The drama introduces the character of Hilde Wangel who is again portrayed ...

'' and ''

The Plaything ''The Plaything'' is a 1929 British romance film directed by Castleton Knight and starring Estelle Brody, Heather Thatcher and Nigel Barrie. The film was a mixture of silent and sound film as it was released during the transition period follow ...

''. Pauline Johnson was a leading British silent actress of her age, although appeared in few films after 1930. Moore Marriott was only 41 when he appeared in the film, but is already portrayed playing a retiring engine driver.

Cast

Moore Marriott George Thomas Moore Marriott (14 September 1885 – 11 December 1949) was an English character actor best remembered for the series of films he made with Will Hay. His first appearance with Hay was in the film '' Dandy Dick'' (1935), but he w ...

– Old Bob White *

Pauline Johnson Emily Pauline Johnson (10 March 1861 – 7 March 1913), also known by her Mohawk stage name ''Tekahionwake'' (pronounced ''dageh-eeon-wageh'', ), was a Canadian poet, author, and performer who was popular in the late 19th and early 20th centur ...

– Joan White, his daughter *

(as Raymond Milland) – Jim Edwards *Alec Hurley – Crow (the villain)

Production

4472 FLYING SCOTSMAN at Steamtown Railway Museum

The film was shot with co-operation of the

London and North Eastern Railway The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) was the second largest (after LMS) of the " Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain. It operated from 1 January 1923 until nationalisation on 1 January 1948. At th ...

company, who allocated their flagship Class A1 locomotive, the eponymous 4472 ''Flying Scotsman'' along with use of the Hertford Loop Line for filming. This locomotive was extensively used by the LNER for promotional purposes, having been a star of the 1924

British Empire Exhibition The British Empire Exhibition was a colonial exhibition held at Wembley Park, London England from 23 April to 1 November 1924 and from 9 May to 31 October 1925. Background In 1920 the British Government decided to site the British Empire Exhibit ...

and breaking a number of speed records. At the time of its appearance in this film, the locomotive is technically an A1 (only being rebuilt and classified "A3" in 1947). The locomotive is the only member of its class to have been preserved. All of the stunts were filmed on the moving locomotive with the actors. Most dangerously, at one point actress Pauline Johnson walks along the edge of the moving train wearing high heeled shoes, transferring from the coaches to the locomotive while travelling at speed.British Pictures.com
URL accessed 23 June 2010 Allegedly Sir

Nigel Gresley Sir Herbert Nigel Gresley (19 June 1876 – 5 April 1941) was a British railway engineer. He was one of Britain's most famous steam locomotive engineers, who rose to become Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the London and North Eastern Rai ...

, chief engineer of the LNER, was so concerned at the unsafe practices shown in the film, such as the decoupling of the locomotive from the train while in motion, he insisted that a disclaimer was placed in the opening credits explaining that such things could not happen on the LNER. The notice stated "For the purposes of the film, dramatic licence has been taken in regard to the safety equipment used on The Flying Scotsman"., accessed 23 June 2010 Film historian John Huntley claimed that Gresley subsequently forbade any further filming on the LNER. Along with

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

's ''

Blackmail Blackmail is an act of coercion using the threat of revealing or publicizing either substantially true or false information about a person or people unless certain demands are met. It is often damaging information, and it may be revealed to fa ...

'', this was one of the first British

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

s. Like that film, it was initially intended to be a

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

, with the decision to switch to speech made during production. As a result, early scenes feature speech captions and music instead of recorded voices, with character dialogue only appearing towards the end of the film.BFI database
URL accessed 23 June 2010 It is unclear whether it was initially released with sound, with some film historians such as John Huntley claiming it predates ''Blackmail'' to be the earliest British sound film.A Tale of Two Scotsmen
, episode of ''

Steam Days ''Steam Days'' is a 1986 BBC Two television documentary series written and presented by Miles Kington. Each episode is themed around the history of British steam locomotives and railways, particularly highlighting preserved locomotives operating a ...

'' (BBC: 1986) The BFI film database claims that the soundtrack was added in March 1930.

References

External links

*
''The Flying Scotsman'' at SilentEra

of restored 2011 DVD release {{DEFAULTSORT:Flying Scotsman (1929 film) 1929 films British black-and-white films Films shot at British International Pictures Studios Warner Bros. films Films set on trains Films directed by Castleton Knight