Ancient Mop Fair

The first film by Chantal Akerman, a short silent 8mm film shot during the Brussels summer Midi Fair, that was one of four short films she made as a short of entrance exam at INSAS were she studied for just a couple of months.

Carousels, doubling up on the helter skelter and an enormous key feature in the annual funfair on Mitcham Green.

Early film footage of fun fair workers and revelers at Devil's Dyke on the South Downs, taken by pioneer James Williamson in around 1896. At a fair at Devil's Dyke, boys scrap beside wooden swing boats. Others, wearing dark suits, watch chains and caps, stretch up to push one of the swing boats. The boys are aware of the camera, which films them from a fixed position. A couple swing sticks in the air, playing up to the camera while the boys work. At the merry-go-round, two women stand in the foreground. They wear shirts with full pleated sleeves and boaters. Other visitors to the fair pass by the camera, including a man with a pipe and a woman with a wide cloak. Young visitors ride on a track, the South Downs in view behind. They cycle, turning a wheel in front of them. An open-top carriage rides away from the camera and back again along a switchback railway, driven by a worker who jumps on and off.

The Iowa State Fair draws millions of people to the city of Des Moines every year. However, this film is not about the Iowa State Fair or the people who attend. It's about where they park their cars. Inspired by the classic documentary, "Heavy Metal Parking Lot".

Ultimate Frisbee is founded on fair play and Spirit of the Game. There is no referee and players call their own fouls. Will Beefree, a team from Turin, be able to maintain the balance between the soul of Ultimate and the desire to win the Italian Championship?

Michael Wood tells the extraordinary story of an ordinary woman in a time of revolution. Born during the reign of Henry VIII, Mary Arden is the daughter of a Warwickshire farmer, but she marries into a new life in the rising Tudor middle class in Stratford-upon-Avon. There she has eight children, three of whom die young. Her husband becomes mayor, but is bankrupted by his shady business dealings. Faced with financial ruin, religious persecution and power politics, the family is the glue that keeps them together until they are rescued by Mary's successful eldest son - William Shakespeare!

Rides, boxing booths, and a dog-faced monkey keep on moving as the travelling fair hits Mitcham and Stratford-upon-Avon, with a look in at Blackpool.

In the 70s, Barsham Faire on August Bank Holiday became a tradition for many to celebrate things 'medieval' and raise funds for local arts events. It put Barsham on the map.

The ornate pavilions of cinematographs, boxing booths and menageries at Hull Fair.

This Traveltalk series short visits several points of interest in England, including the port of Liverpool, war destruction at Coventry, the historic Warwick Castle, and Stratford-on-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare.

A short prior to World War I film which captures festivities at a fair near a church in Bitola.

A short film from Slovenia made by Karol Grossmann.

Film of local events in Ajmer province including the fair at Pushkar.

Short documentary film about Maryland, a corner of Stratford neglected by the Olympic ‘regeneration’. Seen through the eyes of veteran grime emcee Chronik.

A documentary about traveling fairs in Spain.

Roll up, the fair's in town - even with a war on.