Making Christmas Crackers (1910)

Clocking in at just over a slight six minutes, this fascinating document depicts the girls and women of Messrs Clark, Nickolls and Coombs factory making Christmas decorations, most likely at the company's Clamico Works at Victoria Park in London. The film, which is completely silent, takes us through the various stages both by hand and with the help of machines, and shows a workforce of exclusively women, not a sight that was a regular thing before the first or even second World War. Stirking for the impecable attire that is worn by the workforce, it differs from a similar film from the same year, A Day in the Life of a Coal Miner as you might expect, although both pieces impressively display an era and lifestyle that is almost unthinkable to us now. The film concludes with the products made being used by the light of a Christmas tree by a middle class family in a rather impressive looking house, and even presents an appearance by Father Christmas; presumably Wrapping Christmas Crackers was a huge influence on the latter day Coca-Cola lorry adverts, a product that, like Christmas Crackers, can bring joy to all and potentially screw up your heart, although through the loud bang rather than rotting away your teeth or pumping you full of sugar. Happy Christmas! 7.5/10