16mm film, original master 'The Skye Line: Fort William to Mallaig'

Filmed in 1959 on the West Highland Railway in Scotland. Film shows train being pulled by steam locomotive 61784 departing from Fort William station and following the train journey, with shots taken from a passenger view, outside the carriage's window, onto the Highland landscape, lineside shots also show the train steaming through the landscape, including steam train passing on Glenfinnan Viaduct (shot from carriages and from lineside afar), passing through Glennfinnan station, Arisaig station, arrival at Mallaig station, shots of Mallaig harbour with wooden fishing boats, passengers boarding MV Loch Seaforth, Loch Seaforth departing (ship linking Stornoway with Mallaig and Kyle of Lochalsh), footage of train pulled by 61784 return journey to Fort William, including views of Ben Nevis. A film made for Railway Roundabout BBC TV, by John Adams and Patrick Whitehouse. This is the original master film reel, colour, silent. Duration: 5 minutes 30 seconds

This film is part of the Railway Roundabout collection donated by the makers of the programme, John Adams and Patrick Whitehouse. They produced films on contemporary British and foreign railways for the BBC Children's programme 'Railway Roundabout, broadcast monthly between 1958 and 1962 on BBC Television. The commentary was created and broadcast live, so the original films in the collection are silent. The Railway Roundabout collection includes the original masters, prints, some offcuts and working material for Railway Roundabout programmes as well as other films (non-Railway Roundabout) made by the John Adams and Patrick Whitehouse and a small number of films made by others. The collection also includes the original un-edited audio recordings made between 1960 and 1965 by John Adams and Patrick Whitehouse for the BBC radio programme Railway Roundup. Additionally, John Adams and Patrick Whitehouse were both photographers, their respective photographic collections are held by the National Railway Museum. This film is titled 'The Skye Line: Fort William to Mallaig' on title frame on film and on Railway Roundabout 16mm masters list, and 'The Road to Skye' on BBC Programme Index. First broadcast on 30 June 1959 on BBC Television.