One of the real pleasures of researching the films made in Borehamwood and Elstree is rediscovering just how ambitious some of these productions were, and Goodbye, Mr Chips (1969) is a perfect example.

In our collection we have a beautiful original press book for the film, illustrated with colour production photographs and biographies of the cast and key creative crew.

The film was shot across a wide range of locations: Sherborne School in Dorset, several locations in London, and extensive filming in Italy — including Pompeii, Paestum and Positano. Remarkably, it was the first film ever permitted to shoot inside Pompeii.

Back in Borehamwood, three lavish sets were constructed at MGM British Studios which used to stand on Elstree Way:
• The ballroom of the Savoy Hotel as it appeared in 1924
• The vast Norman-style Assembly Hall of...

We’re delighted to have just acquired a very rare and beautiful early-1960s publicity brochure produced by Associated British Studios — a wonderful piece of studio-era marketing design and a real time-capsule of Elstree in its ABPC heyday.

The album is especially unusual: it contains 16 removable publicity photographs of British film stars, along with 5 removable film poster reproductions, each mounted on stiff card pages with pockets and printed descriptions. It even includes a fold-out studio plan, offering a rare glimpse of how the site was presented to the industry and press at the time.

The featured stars include:

Richard Todd, Sylvia Syms, Charlie Drake, Tony Hancock, Millicent Martin, Carole Lesley, Paul Massie, George Baker, Peter Arne, Maggie Smith, Richard Harris, Alan White, Sarah Branch, John Lee, Kim Tracy and John Turner.