WAR PICTORIAL NEWS NO 143 [Main Title]

An edition of the British official newsreel "War Pictorial News", produced by the Ministry of Information, Middle East.

I. 'THE PORT OF OLD CAIRO.' Footage shows general commercial activity in the small port on the banks of the River Nile. Egyptian children use wooden looms to weave sailcloth, while others sew the sailcloth in the open near the banks of the Nile. Grain sacks are unloaded from moored dhows and are carried to storage areas by overburdened Egyptian porters. Other goods off loaded from the river transports include bricks from Middle Egypt and Limestone from Tura. Sugar cane is unloaded and stacked awaiting transport by cart to market.

II. 'WAR NEWS.' French naval ratings practice their marksmanship from the decks of an unidentified French vessel, using a small calibre naval gun (3-in ?). French anti-aircraft teams fire 20mm Oerlikon cannon and 40mm Bofors guns during a practice shoot (possibly the training ship Jeanne d'Arc ?). Various views of the complements of the French destroyers Le Fantasque and Le Terrible follow, the men being drawn up on deck during an awards ceremony (cf NMV 758/1). The French battleship Richelieu is shown at anchor following its refit in the United States and underway. On the Italian Front men of the Eighth Army find conditions hard going due to a heavy snow fall. A New Zealand (NZ) infantryman attempts to rescue an abandoned motorcycle from a collection of stalled and snowbound Eighth Army vehicles. The commentary outlines the problems of transport and supply due to blizzard conditions over footage of New Zealanders marching through deep snow clad in greatcoats. NZ artillery crews fire snow camouflaged 75mm pack howitzers at unseen targets in the area of Monte Maiella in the Chieti Region of Italy. British Airborne troops move across snow drifts armed with Sten 9mm sub-machine guns and Lee-Enfield .303-in rifles. Italian Army personnel operate a mule train carrying supplies in support of the Allied war effort. NZ infantry don snow camouflage capes and attach snow camouflage material to their Thompson M1928 .45-in sub-machine guns. In England, brief footage shows activities at work benches in a ball bearing factory. Factory operatives use milling and grinding machinery to produce ball bearings and ball-races.

III. 'AUSTRALIA.' A humorous item covering a combined US and Australian "rodeo" held in Brisbane that attracted crowds of over seventy thousand. Off-duty servicemen ride horses and bulls and many are trampled in the overenthusiastic crowd of spectators. Footage shows the aftermath of the collapse of a spectators stand that apparently left no serious injuries.

35mm