Archive footage of a family Christmas at a local home is one of many curious artefacts on show at a festive exhibition at Trafford Local Studies and Archives.
The winter-themed exhibition will run from Monday 1 December to Saturday 3 January alongside the service’s much-anticipated annual social media advent calendar, featuring newly digitised and unseen images from around the borough.
The cine film from a house in Sale at Christmas 1964 and 1965 will be available to view at Trafford Local Studies and Archives at Waterside House, as well as paintings, objects and vintage Christmas cards.
The stealthy arrival of Father Christmas opens the entertaining seven-minute home movie, showing two Christmases for three generations of one family in Sale and their beloved pet budgie.
From the fun of opening presents to the rituals of turkey, paper hats and setting fire to the pudding, these are traditional, happy events, though the star of the show is probably a new invention – the Dalek toy trundling around the kitchen floor.
The cine film was donated to the British Film Institute by Mrs Alma Rice of Timperley and the footage is now held in archives as a great example of everyday British life from that era.
Festive cards of historic Trafford featuring 10 different designs of winter scenes across the borough are now on sale at Local Studies and Archives, too. They include horse-led snow ploughs on Chester Road to glorious snow-laded trees at Flixton House.
Individual cards are £2 each and a pack of five – one design – is £4.50. Images used for the cards are from Trafford’s photographic collection, including scenes that have been recently digitised.
Cllr Eve Parker, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Leisure, Arts, Culture and Heritage said:
“We’re delighted to present this display in our local studies centre that will offer a real insight into Christmases past in our area – a fascinating, festive experience!
“And we’re also pleased to bring recently-digitised archive photography to life and whole new audiences in the form of these beautiful cards.”
Trafford Local Studies at Waterside House is open Monday 10am - 7pm, Tuesday 10am - 5pm, Wednesday 10am - 5pm, Thursday 10am - 5pm, Friday 10am - 5pm, Saturday 10am - 4pm, Sunday Closed. The centre closes on Christmas eve and re-opens on Friday 2 January.