The Thirties in Colour - 2. Wright Around the World

Four-part series using rare, private and commercial film and photographic archives to give poignant and surprising insights into the 1930s, a decade which erupted into colour as polychromatic photographic technology came of age and three important processes - Dufaycolour, Technicolor and Kodachrome - were brought to the market.

Together with his younger brother Bolling, the American industrialist Harry Wright was wealthy enough to indulge his twin passions for travel and filmmaking. Both siblings collected and shot films that captured the world at a pivotal time in history.

They captured astonishing images acquired and filmed in the islands of the South Pacific, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, as well as South Africa, Morocco, Palestine, and several countries in Europe, including Britain. These destinations were visited during the golden age of ocean travel, when the well-off could escape the Great Depression and travel the world on luxury cruise ships.

The sea had become a playground but it would soon become a battleground, as the world lurched towards the bloodiest war in history. (R)

Broadcast on:

BBC Four, 8:00pm Monday 16th November 2009

First broadcast:

Wednesday 23rd July 2008

Duration:

60 minutes

Available until:

8:59pm Monday 23rd November 2009

Categories:

• Factual,
• Arts, Culture & the Media,
• History