| Descript. |
1 videodiscs (ca. 166 minutes) : sound, colour with black and white sequences ; 4 3/4 inches |
| Series |
Making history (Television programme)
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| Notes |
'Developed with the assistance of the New South Wales Film and Television Office'--Episode 1. |
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'Film Australia production in association with Prospero Productions and Screenwest and Lotterywest ...'--Episode 2. |
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'Film Austalia in association with Piper Films and the South Australian Film Corporation. Developed with the assistance of Australian Broadcasting Corporation and BBC Scotland'--Episode 3. |
| Contents |
Copyright notice: Commonwealth of Australia. Copyright Regulations. 1969. Warning. |
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Episode 1: Constructing Australia: the bridge / written and directed by Simon Nasht ; producers, Simon Nasht, Renee Kennedy ; director of photography, Peter Coleman. -- Ep. 2: Constructing Australia: pipe dreams / directed by Franco de Chiera ; produced by Julia Redwood, Ed Punchard ; director of photography, Ian Batt ; written by Franco de Chiera and John McCourt -- Ep. 3: Constructing Australia: a wire through the heart / director, Darcy Yuille ; producers, Mike Piper, Corey Piper, Simon Nasht ; writers, David Yuille, Rob George. |
| Performer |
Narrator: Wendy Hughes. |
| Summary |
"A three-part documentary, which interweaves selected archival footage and film dramatisation of historical events to tell the story of engineering feats by visionary Australians with the ambition and determination to construct structures to link, communicate and open up inaccessible frontiers. These three monumental Australian engineering projects, each helped unite a country and mould its sense of identity. Episode one recounts how a giant steel arch, resembling a coat hanger, was conceived with the purpose of creating 'the people's bridge' by engineer, J.J.C. Bradfield in partnership with politican Jack Lang. In the process, they stirred up controversy, both at home and in Britain. This 'people's bridge' was begun during the Great Depression and completed in March 1932. |
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"The story of its construction tells about seemingly insurmountable practical problems, human drama, personal conflicts and political intrigues. The end product was the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which not only altered the life of the city, but soon became the symbol of Sydney and Australia. |
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"Episode two is the story of how two men shared a vision for opening up Western Australia, by pumping a river of water through pipes across the desert. There were isolated goldfields full of precious metal, but the people were dying of thirst. Western Australia's first Premier and leading explorer, Sir John Forrest, envisioned taking water to the goldfields; and, in Charles Yelverton O'Connor, he found the man he needed to realise his dreams. Piping water across the desert was the biggest and most ambitious engineering project of its kind in the world, then. It would save thousands from disease and drought; unlock untold riches in gold; and allow Western Australia to take its rightful place as a state in the new Commonwealth of Australia. |
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"The construction of the pipeline took five years, and was dogged by controversy. It also ruined reputations and pushed one individual to breaking point. In the early 1900s, during the founding of the new Australian Commonwealth, the dream of water in the goldfields finally became a reality. The project created one of the biggest weirs in the southern hemisphere and one of the longest pipelines in the world. |
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"Episode three is about how, through John McDouall Stuart's exploration of Australia's inhospitable interior, Charles Todd was able to construct a telegraph line through the heart of the continent, linking Australia to the world, and the world to Australia. Its construction heralded the beginning of a new communications era, as revolutionary as the Internet. News from overseas arrived in hours rather than months, and it secured Adelaide's position as the centre for early colonial communications. The project made Todd a hero, but it cost Stuart his life." |
| Notes |
First released [Sydney] : Film Australia [in association with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation ... [et al.]] c2007 Original released in series: Making history |
| Subject |
Lang, J. T. (John Thomas), 1876-1975.
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Bradfield, J. J. C. (John Job Crew), 1867-1943.
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O'Connor, C. Y. -- (Charles Yelverton) -- 1843-1902.
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Forrest, John Sir, 1847-1918.
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Stuart, John McDouall, 1815-1866 -- Travel -- Australia.
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Todd, Charles Sir, 1826-1910.
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Building -- Australia -- History.
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Engineering -- Australia -- History.
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Bridges, Arched -- New South Wales -- Sydney -- Design and construction.
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Telegraph -- Australia -- History.
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Overland Telegraph Line (N.T. and S. Aust.) -- History.
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Pipelines -- Western Australia -- Design and construction.
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Water-supply -- Western Australia -- History.
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Water-supply engineering -- Western Australia -- Kalgoorlie -- History.
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Sydney Harbour Bridge (Sydney, N.S.W.) -- Design and construction.
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Sydney Harbour Bridge (Sydney, N.S.W.) -- History.
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Australia -- Buildings, structures, etc.
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| Other Author |
Nasht, Simon.
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Kennedy, Renee.
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De Chiera, Frank.
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Redwood, Julia.
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Punchard, Ed.
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Yuille, Darcy.
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Piper, Mike.
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Piper, Corey.
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McCourt, John.
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Hughes, Wendy.
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ABC-TV (Australia)
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Film Australia.
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New South Wales Film and Television Office.
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BBC Scotland.
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Prospero Productions.
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South Australian Film Corporation.
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| Other Title |
Bridge. |
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Pipe dreams. |
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Wire through the heart. |
| ISBN |
9398710724493 (DVD) |
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