Wednesday 22 April 2009

Oyster fishing at Whitstable, Kent, 1920


This delightful film from the British Film Institute archive shows the famous oyster fishermen of Whitstable at their trade in 1920. It is all very staged - the fishermen pour down the beach and row off just like a Le Mans start at a motor race, and the smacks pass each other dramatically in a way that just cannot have been accidental.
The rowing boats are splendid - one is rowed randan like the Cornish except that bow sculls and the others row, whereas the usual randan arrangement puts the sculler in the middle.
And what moustaches!
Thanks to Caroline's Miscellany for the heads-up.

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