Events

Museum of Cinema Technology,
Bletchley Park
Bletchley
MK3 6EB

We have a number of permanent exhibitions either of single or multiple pieces of equipment.

This is the largest of the permanent exhibitions of the Trust and is managed by Ken Draper, Museum Curator with a team of other Trust members who meet once a week for renovation and other works. Equipment on show covers 70mm to 8mm projection equipment and ancillary items of equipment such as editing machines, amplifiers etc.

Astra Cinema, Imperial War Museum,
Duxford Cambridgeshire

This was our first real location where we were able to have our own projection equipment up and running for the benefit of the members and public. Access to the Imperial War Museum Aircraft Museum, Duxford gave automatic entrance to the Astra Cinema. This arrangement has now ceased since the north side of the site has become more security sensitive. However, the cinema still has the facilities to show film and does so for restricted museum personnel. The equipment installed at present is a pair of Philips FP20 35mm projectors complete with Philips sound and Peerless Magnarcs converted from Arc to Xenon.

(below) Astra Cinema

Wirral Museum,  Hamilton Square,
Birkenhead  Wirral

The 35mm projection equipment was installed by Mike Taylor, North West Regional Co-ordinator and his team of members, and whilst being the property of the Trust is fully maintained by Trust members. The equipment, a pair of Westar 2000 1A  35mm projectors complete with Century soundheads and Westar bases, was donated by the Civic Hall Aylesbury.These are fitted with Peerless Magnarcs, converted to xenon and donated by 20th Century Fox. Sadly the Museum has closed and the Wirral Museum Film club is in it's last season.

Armley Mills Industrial Museum Leeds

This very important museum set in the heart of Leeds, UK within which are representative examples of all the projectors manufactured by A.Kershaw & Son Ltd, Leeds. The name for the range of projectors started as Kalee and finished as Gaumont Kalee (GK). The factory closed in 1980 whilst operating under the name Rank Optics. The Trust were able to help the museum complete their exhibition by loaning a GK21 35mm projector complete and having the famous “elephants foot” unique base. Click for further information about Armley Mills

Exhibition Hall at Armley Mills Leeds

G.K21 Elephant's Foot Ex Regal Edmontan LOndon. Now property of the PPT Trust

G.K21 Mech showing a 4 track Mag head

Scotland's Secret Bunker

www.secretbunker.co.uk

GB Type "N" portable 35mm projector head

The Battle of the Atlantic Museum Liverpool

The Museum features a Projection room, and a projector used by Sir Winston Churchil

The Gaumont Kalee Dragon projector was originally installed to show secret footage to Sir Winston Churchill in London. This same projector is now installed in the "(Liverpool) Battle of the Atlantic Museum".

Kalee Dragon 35mm projector supplied courtesy of PPT

"During the Battle of the Atlantic, some merchant ships carried Spitfires and Hurricanes whichwere launched by catapult. More often than not outside of the range of an aerodrome, so that the pilots, mission completed, had to ditch and hope they were plucked out of the sea before they drowned or died of exposure. So by no means was The Battle of the Atlantic, was a Navy show.

We lost ships in convoy that probably would have escaped torpedoes if they had sailed independently and at their top speed, as the Queen liners did. But merits of convoy far out weighed disadvantages.

City of Benreas torpedoed 56 degrees, 43 minutes north, 21 degrees, 50 minutes west, sinking, proceed immediately. The position was 200 miles from us. We reached it on the afternoon of September 18th.

Two German ships on parade.

First we saw a raft, there were two girls on it in pajamas and a man with a smashed leg. One of the girls lay almost senseless, her hand clutched by the man. They had been on that raft, drenched by the sea, chilled by an icy gale and stung by hale stones for 19 hours.

We saw an upturned boat. Two school girls were clinging to it. There was a boy aged 9 sharing another raft with two men, one of them with his head split open. How can you not weep when you see something like that.

The little boy on the raft, he was a Londoner, Jack Keely. When he was carried up the netting, which had been flung over the destroyer’s side, he grinned and said "I say, thanks very much". You stand abashed at courage like that.