Thursday, March 19, 2020

The Rushcliffe by-election of 1934


Click on the image above to watch Reel Rushcliffe Newsreel on the BFI site.

There the blurb says:
This very basic campaign film, shot in the amateur 9.5mm format, was made to promote Ralph Assheton, the Conservative MP for Rushcliffe in Nottinghamshire from 1934 to 1945. Predominantly using still photographs and captions, the film follows Assheton's victory in a by-election in July 1934, through to his maiden speech to the House the following year. An ominous mention of German re-armament and warnings given to Mussolini in Italy underline an uncertain future. 
Ralph Assheton (1901-1984) later held the seats of the City of London and Blackburn West before his elevation to the Lords as Baron Clitheroe in 1955.
The result in the by-election (held on 26 July 1934) was:

Ralph Assheton (Conservative)    19,374
H.J. Cadogan (Labour)                 15,081
Arthur Marwood (Liberal)                5,251

6 comments:

nigel hunter said...

I understand that the mind of a child does not mature till the approx age of 25.Then adulthood is reached. However what age does a person understand the difference between right and wrong?. Are we the ones behind the times as other countries believe that 10 is too young? Don't parents have a responsibility to tdebateeach right from wrong as well as school.

DEBATE

nigel hunter said...

Last line should be 'to teach'

Jonathan Calder said...

Nigel, I think you meant to leave this comment on the previous post.

Ian Sanderson said...

The film presumably promoted his campaign in the 1935 General Election. Mussolini was at the time invading Abyssinia, though around the same time he was using his troops to deter Hitler from taking over Austria (which happened threee years later),

Ian Sanderson said...

9.5mmm, a format primarily promoted by Pathe, used sprocket holes in the middle of the film between the frames so that a frame nearly as big as 16mm could be accommodated in film about half the width. The downside was that, if a sprocket tooth missed the sprocket hole it could damage the middle of the frame, as can be seen several times in this film.

Walsie said...

I notice that Labour had picked up very well from the nadir of 1931 - even with the issue of a leader widely disrespected (perhaps unfairly) George Lansbury. I love the way the cameraman included probably the only art deco house in Beeston.