The White Bus
Encyclopedia
The White Bus is a 1967
short film by British director Lindsay Anderson
. The screenplay was jointly adapted with Shelagh Delaney
from a short story in her 1963 collection Sweetly Sings the Donkey.
It was originally commissioned by producer Oscar Lewenstein as one third of a 'portmanteau' feature entitled Red White and Zero, with the other sections supplied by Anderson's Free Cinema
collaborators Tony Richardson
and Karel Reisz
. In the event, the third section was directed by Peter Brook
rather than Reisz.
Anderson began shooting on 18 October 1965, with film newcomer Patricia Healey supported by Arthur Lowe
, John Sharp
and, in smaller roles, Anthony Hopkins
, Stephen Moore
, Barry Evans and others. Locations included Manchester City Centre, predominantly around Manchester Town Hall
, Central Library
and Piccadilly Gardens
, although Cross Street is featured in one shot. Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Central
Stations are also shown. The 'model estate' of high-rise flats was shot on the Kersal Flats estate, home to the notorious Moors murderers
, Myra Hindley and Ian Brady, while the factory sequences were shot in Trafford Park
, notably in the Metropolitan Vickers works. It also featured scenes on Cheetham Hill Road and inside Cheetham College (now demolished).
Both the exterior and interior shots of the school were taken in the former Pendleton High School for Girls - now mainly demolished, but with the original Victorian building converted to a retirement home. Using local people, Anderson also staged parodies of paintings by Manet
, Fragonard and Goya in Buile Hill Park in Salford.
1967 in film
The year 1967 in film involved some significant events. It is widely considered as one of the most ground-breaking years in film.-Events:* December 26 - The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour airs on British television....
short film by British director Lindsay Anderson
Lindsay Anderson
Lindsay Gordon Anderson was an Indian-born, British feature film, theatre and documentary director, film critic, and leading light of the Free Cinema movement and the British New Wave...
. The screenplay was jointly adapted with Shelagh Delaney
Shelagh Delaney
Shelagh Delaney, FRSL was an English dramatist and screenwriter, best-known for her debut work, A Taste of Honey ....
from a short story in her 1963 collection Sweetly Sings the Donkey.
It was originally commissioned by producer Oscar Lewenstein as one third of a 'portmanteau' feature entitled Red White and Zero, with the other sections supplied by Anderson's Free Cinema
Free Cinema
Free Cinema was a documentary film movement that emerged in England in the mid-1950s. The term referred to an absence of propagandised intent or deliberate box office appeal. Co-founded by Lindsay Anderson, though he later disdained the 'movement' tag, with Karel Reisz, Tony Richardson and Lorenza...
collaborators Tony Richardson
Tony Richardson
Cecil Antonio "Tony" Richardson was an English theatre and film director and producer.-Early life:Richardson was born in Shipley, Yorkshire in 1928, the son of Elsie Evans and Clarence Albert Richardson, a chemist...
and Karel Reisz
Karel Reisz
Karel Reisz was a Czech-born British filmmaker who was active in post–war Britain, and one of the pioneers of the new realist strain in 1950s and 1960s British cinema.-Early life:...
. In the event, the third section was directed by Peter Brook
Peter Brook
Peter Stephen Paul Brook CH, CBE is an English theatre and film director and innovator, who has been based in France since the early 1970s.-Life:...
rather than Reisz.
Anderson began shooting on 18 October 1965, with film newcomer Patricia Healey supported by Arthur Lowe
Arthur Lowe
Arthur Lowe was a BAFTA Award winning English actor. He was best known for playing Captain George Mainwaring in the popular British sitcom Dad's Army from 1968 until 1977.-Early life:...
, John Sharp
John Sharp (actor)
John Sharp was a British television actor.He made more than 100 appearances in television and occasionally films between 1949 and 1991. Sharp began as a film actor in 1949 and appeared in films throughout the 1950s...
and, in smaller roles, Anthony Hopkins
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
, Stephen Moore
Stephen Moore (actor)
Stephen Moore is an English actor, known for his work on British television since the 1980s. He is known for his appearances in Rock Follies and other TV series such as The Last Place on Earth, the children's series The Queen's Nose and the drama Mersey Beat and the British TV comedy series Solo,...
, Barry Evans and others. Locations included Manchester City Centre, predominantly around Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian-era, Neo-gothic municipal building in Manchester, England. The building functions as the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local government departments....
, Central Library
Manchester Central Library
Manchester Central Library is a circular library south of the extended Town Hall in Manchester, England. It acts as the headquarters of the Manchester Library & Information Service, which also consists of 22 other community libraries.Designed by E...
and Piccadilly Gardens
Piccadilly Gardens
Piccadilly Gardens is a green space in Manchester city centre, England, situated at one end of Market Street and on the edge of the Northern Quarter...
, although Cross Street is featured in one shot. Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Central
Manchester Central railway station
Manchester Central railway station is a former railway station in Manchester City Centre, England. One of Manchester's main railway terminals between 1880 and 1969, it now houses an exhibition and conference centre named Manchester Central.-History:...
Stations are also shown. The 'model estate' of high-rise flats was shot on the Kersal Flats estate, home to the notorious Moors murderers
Moors Murderers
"Moors Murderers" can refer to:*Moors murders*The Moors Murderers, an early band of Chrissie Hynde before she formed The Pretenders....
, Myra Hindley and Ian Brady, while the factory sequences were shot in Trafford Park
Trafford Park
Trafford Park is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. Located opposite Salford Quays, on the southern side of the Manchester Ship Canal, it is west-southwest of Manchester city centre, and north of Stretford. Until the late 19th century it was the...
, notably in the Metropolitan Vickers works. It also featured scenes on Cheetham Hill Road and inside Cheetham College (now demolished).
Both the exterior and interior shots of the school were taken in the former Pendleton High School for Girls - now mainly demolished, but with the original Victorian building converted to a retirement home. Using local people, Anderson also staged parodies of paintings by Manet
Manet
-MANET as an abbreviation:*MANET is a mobile ad hoc network, a self-configuring mobile wireless network.*MANET database or Molecular Ancestry Network, bioinformatics database-People with the surname Manet:*Édouard Manet, a 19th-century French painter....
, Fragonard and Goya in Buile Hill Park in Salford.