John Eldridge (director)

John Eldridge (1917–1962) was a short-lived British film director.

Gaining fame as documentary film maker in the Second World War for the Ministry of Information his topics covered both war and very particularly architecture and urban planning. He appears to have knowledge and/or training in these fields.

Often working with poets he had at least five collaborative projects with Dylan Thomas.

Life

He was born in Folkestone on 26 July 1917.[1]

Around 1950 he joined John Grierson's film unit: Group 3 Productions.[2][3]

Over and above directing he also did several screenplays, most notably that of Pool of London[4] and Operation Amsterdam.[5]

Plagued by ill-health he died in Brompton Hospital in London on 14 June 1962.[1]

Works
  • Sea Lights (1938 co-directed with Martin Curtis
  • Village School (1940) renowned documentary
  • Story of Michael Flaherty (1940) starring Morton King
  • S.o.s. (1940) documentary short
  • War Front (1941) story of a war correspondent on the front starring Bruce Belfrage
  • Tank Patrol (1941) short film regarding the crew of a Crusader tank trapped behind enemy lines in North Africa
  • Architects of England (1941) documentary narrated by Alvar Lidell
  • Wales: Green Mountain, Black Mountain (1942) documentary looking at the historic conflicts between England and Wales scripted by Dylan Thomas
  • Trinity House (1942) docu-drama about British lighthouses starring John Snagge and Laidman Browne
  • New Towns for Old (1942) documentary about urban planning scripted by Dylan Thomas
  • Fuel for Battle (1944) documentary about military supplies scripted by Dylan Thomas
  • Our Country (1944) docu-drama scripted by Dylan Thomas and starring Burgess Meredith
  • A Soldier Comes Home (1945)
  • A City Reborn (1945) documentary regarding the rebuilding of Coventry again scripted by Dylan Thomas
  • Park Here (1947) documentary looking at bad parking and the use of car parks, scripted by Laurie Lee
  • North East Corner (1947) documentary looking at fishing and farming in Aberdeenshire narrated by Laurie Lee
  • Waverley Steps (1948) a docu-drama regarding a day trip to Edinburgh
  • Three Dawns to Sydney (1949)
  • Brandy for the Parson (1952) a "remake" of Whisky Galore!
  • Laxdale Hall (1953) a second "planning film" but feature length regarding relocation of a town due to access problems
  • Conflict of Wings (1954) filming by Arthur Grant

References
  1. "John Eldridge". BFI.
  2. "John Eldridge". IMDb.
  3. "John Grierson, Screen Pioneer Who Made Documentaries Dies (Published 1972)". February 21, 1972 – via NYTimes.com.
  4. "BFI Screenonline: Pool of London (1950)". www.screenonline.org.uk.
  5. "Operation Amsterdam". Time Out Worldwide.
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