History of Portsmouth

This gem of a film shows pre-war Portsmouth and Southsea, in colour, before the Blitz and features its historic streets and buildings and holiday-makers on Southsea's beaches.

This amazing colour record of pre-war Portsmouth shows many of the city's popular features including the Hilsea Lido, Southsea's rock gardens, trolley-buses and the Cenotaph. We visit Langstone Harbour and tour historic sites in Old Portsmouth including the Cathedral and the scene of an assassination. After a look at Dickens' house and the Sally Port, we visit HMS Victory and the City Walls. Finally, we visit Portchester Castle at the northern end of Portsmouth Harbour.