Some of the Mitchell and Kenyon films that were found in the cellars of Mercers in Northgate Blackburn can be viewed on YouTube. Here are a couple of St Joseph’s school and Audley Range School.

In 1994 during demolition work in what had been Mercers shop in Northgate, Blackburn, two workmen were clearing out the basement when they found three metal drums like milk churns, and looked inside to see hundreds of small spools of film. On their way to the Lethbridges Scrap Metal Processors was Magic Moments Video which did cine to video transfers, and the workmen dragged in a churn and asked the proprietor Nigel Garth Gregory if the films were of any value.

Gregory knew of local businessman and historian Peter Worden’s interest in cinematography, he phoned up and offered to arrange for the drums to be delivered to him. The films were then looked after by Peter Worden until their transfer to the British Film Institute in July 2000. These films are published by the BFI on YouTube