Royal coronations tend not to come along very often. When King Charles III is crowned on Saturday, it will be only the sixth such ceremony in 120 years. The last one took place in 1953 when the late Queen Elizabeth II acceded the throne. The one before that in 1937 saw George VI become king.
Our wonderful video clip, courtesy of the North East Film Archive, recalls a street party held in Newcastle 86 years ago to celebrate George VI's coronation. The silent colour footage was captured by amateur filmmaker S J Rosslyn Smith, a member of Newcastle & District Amateur Cinematographers Association.
If the 2023 coronation is due to take place amid a reported general lack of interest around the UK, there was no such apathy shown at our 1937 party. The unnamed Newcastle street is festooned in union flags and bunting, with children and adults wearing patriotic red, white and blue as they sit down enthusiastically to enjoy their coronation tea.
READ MORE: Tyneside 85 years ago: 10 photographs from around our region in 1938
George VI was a shy man with a pronounced stammer, and the monarchy had been forced on him after the abdication of his disgraced elder brother Edward VIII in 1936. In his diary, he recorded how he “broke down and sobbed like a child”. Nevertheless, he would rise to the task and earn a reputation as a steadfast king during the Second World War and beyond.
The Evening Chronicle, on May 12, 1937, reported on the region's coronation celebrations under the headlines ‘Newcastle Rejoices Loyally’ and ‘Vast Crowds Watch City Ceremonies’. We noted: "Every town, village and hamlet had its round of coronation festivities, carefully planned for months ahead and lasting from early morning until late at night. Tens of thousands of schoolchildren lived merrily through a day, golden memories of which they will carry all their lives."
For anyone wanting to watch more archive footage like this, but in DVD form, Newcastle On Film has been specially produced by the North East Film Archive (NEFA). Presented and narrated by Pam Royle - latterly of ITV Tyne Tees News fame - it pays homage to an often vanished Tyneside and features lots of wonderful archive film
The DVD Newcastle On Film is priced at £12 (including postage and packing), and all profits from the sale go back into helping fund NEFA's valuable work. Buy it here. See more from the North East Film Archive at www.yfanefa.com
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