Southsea in the late 1940s

Sunlight and shadows combine in Southsea - as this superb chiaroscuro film from Archibald Peskett shows - with images of ships, commuters and numerous trolleybuses

Starting with bustling merchant ships at Camber Docks, our film moves to the busy junction at Elm Grove in Southsea. Trolleybuses abound, collecting and dropping off their passengers. Note that there are many cyclists and pedestrians but only a few motor cars on the roads. The film then shows Portsmouth's Commercial Road, with the Theatre Royal in the background before ending at Guildhall Square - each busy with citizens, trolleybuses and post-war atmosphere.

Archibald Peskett, better known as Archie, was a tailor at Gieves and Hawkes Naval Outfitters in Portsmouth. He was also a member of the Portsmouth Film Society and many aspects of this film display Archie’s considerable skills at using the effects of light and shade - particularly low sunlight and deep shadow. This remarkable film records how busy the Camber Dock was in 1946. Today, in addition to the many other boats, yachts and small ships which use the dock, it is also the base for Wightlink's ferry service to Fishbourne on the Isle of Wight.