Somerleyton Road P.1

Notes on Somerleyton Road Part 1

Below are the notes from the friends meeting on 3rd June, where Sam, Valerie and Ashton were able to help identify people and places in this film.

FIRST PART OF FILM- taking down the church
The church which was known as Glad Tidings and then The Temple of Truth (the daughter of the pastor in the footage is still at that church and would be a good person to talk to)
Bishop Graham is the voice over on the film (Ashton still knows him and offered to talk to him)

1950- the first church built was burnt down by vandals
199- the second pentecostal church was built

Glad Tidings Church then became Jesus Saves ( this is the sign that you can see in the footage) and then The Temple of Truth.

Sam, Ashton and Valerie explain that within the church congregation members are known by the prefix Brother or Sister followed by their surname, hence a lot of the people in the footage that they recognise they only know surnames for.

The church was taken down over a weekend, from friday-sunday just before Christmas, and Sam was the last person to leave the site.

The clip in the footage of two men in white overalls decorating the outside of a building up a ladder are Pastor Ben and Pastor Thomas, decorating the new church. Sam can also be seen in earlier parts of the footage, taking down the church in similar white overalls and black bowler hat.

In the clip there shows a mixed congregation of black and white members - Sam, Valerie and Aston confirm that the church had a mixed congregation.

Although this was not Sam's first film (he says that he has his first film at home, and that it is a 'mad movie') this film is the first film that he made about conflict. He says that form then on he filmed anywhere or anytime that there was a conflict going on ('Anywhere there was conflict I go with my camera'). Sam explains that the commentary was added later.

Names of congregation members Sam, Valerie and Ashton can identify
Sister Jackson
Sister Christie
Bishop Graham (the voiceover )
Pastor Hedlam
Sister Cooke (mentioned in the voiceover)
Sister Lightbird ((mentioned in the voiceover)
Broher Brown (left to go to a church in North London)
Brother Dan (passed away)
Mr. Richards (passed away)
Pastor Ben (seen decorating, and a goood friend of Valerie's- he now has a church in Dulwich)
Pastor Thomas (seen decorating)

Sam identifies the baptism pool, that can be seen in the footage partially destroyed (it is also referenced in the voiceover)

There is footage of the church sign, with gaps for missing letters - you can see that filled in it spells HALL OF GLAD TIDINGS

The church moved to St George School on Railton Road (although Sam, Valerie and Ashton could not remember how this came about), and became the Temple of Truth.

SECOND PART OF FILM - Brixton street scenes

Shops identified in the footage - L.E Campbell and Son, the first travel agent in Brixton, who also was a photographer
Corner of Salton Road- the factory sweet shop. Ashton remembers buying a cocunut and sugar sweet there which he called the buster as it bust his jaw!).
Universal Wine ompany - oppposite the beginning of Railton Road

The man seen in the street with a basket and bread is Deacon Brian from another church.
Suggestions were made that it would be interesting to take photos/footage of the same streets now to compare the changes.

THIRD PART OF THE FILM - a service in the new church
The choir memebrs are all wearing white and are singig a song called ' Jesus the light of the world'- a song that is still sung in churches today.

All the women had to wear hats to church ( Valerue remembers there was a particular hat shop on East Street, a market off the Walworth Road, that was popular at the time).This was following in the West Indian tradition of wearing a hat to church.

The lights that can be seen in the church are special lights that Sam had to use to get the right lighting conditions to film with. He used 500 watt bulbs to get it bright enough, and Ashton would sometimes hold the lights for him. Sam says it was hard to get the lighting right as it was a mixed congregation of both black and white people.

The close up of women in the films are of Sister Carr and Sister Ingram.

From the signs and posters behind the pastor we can tell the day was Mothers Day (in march?), and that the service is also centred around thanking God for the new building that the church had received.