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Hero image for Weekly Review No. 355 - Railway Worker

Weekly Review No. 355 - Railway Worker

Short Film (Full Length) – 1948

This 1948 documentary follows 24 hours of work on the railways. It was directed for the National Film Unit by Margaret Thomson, arguably New Zealand’s first female film director. The film shows the engines and commuter trains preparing to leave Wellington, and the overnight train arriving from Auckland. Workers toil on the railway lines above the remote Waimakariri Gorge, and the town of Otira gets ready for a dance. The final shots are of an engine coming through the dawn and back to the city. Selwyn Toogood (It's in the Bag) narrates.

In the goods depots the day's work takes a different tempo. It's broad daylight before the loading begins. Thousands of wagons a year, millions of tons of goods.
– Narrator

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Thumbnail image for Off the Rails - Good as Gold (Episode 10)

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Thumbnail image for Weekly Review No. 374 - The Coaster

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Thumbnail image for Weekly Review No. 346 - Rhythm and Movement

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Thumbnail image for It's in the Bag - Dunedin (1974)

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Great Crunchie Train Robbery - Cadbury Crunchie

Celebrated rail based advertisement

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By the Light of the Mune

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Thumbnail image for Weekly Review No. 232 - Māori Battalion Returns

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Thumbnail image for Weekly Review No. 97 - Coal from Westland

Weekly Review No. 97 - Coal from Westland

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Weekly Review No. 401

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The First Two Years at School

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Thumbnail image for Assignment - Back to the Future

Assignment - Back to the Future

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Thumbnail image for Pictorial Parade No. 200 - Kb Country

Pictorial Parade No. 200 - Kb Country

Later film featuring trains on the Midland Line

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Selwyn Toogood discusses this film

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A famous New Zealand rail line

Thumbnail image for Making New Zealand  - Railways

Making New Zealand - Railways

A documentary on New Zealand's railway history