Wolverton

33: NOW WOLVERTON’S A PLACE

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Now Wolverton’s a Place is one of Living Archive’s most iconic songs and was written by the late Paul Clark for the musical documentary play Sheltered Lives in 1983. This film was made under the guidance of Louise Roche by students on a Media Skills course in 1997. It features the late Arthur and Barbara ...
34: SILVER JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS 1977

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Another film from Alan Herring showing celebrations around Wolverton for the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977. It mainly focuses on the event in Bushfield School field organised by residents in Stacey Avenue. Older Wolverton residents may recognise some older characters, including Syd Dytham and Harold Nutt.
35: NOBBY’S LAST RUN

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September 5th 1964 saw the closure of the Nobby Newport train line as a result of the Beeching Plan. It had run between Newport Pagnell and Wolverton since 1867. We are lucky that back in the 60s, 70s and 80s Alan Herring had an 8mm cine camera and recorded significant local events. But the films were ...
36: WOLVERTON & THE ROYAL TRAIN

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It’s a testament to the reputation for craftsmanship that Wolverton Railway Works had that it is the place where many of the Royal Trains were built, and the current one is still stored today. Generations of Wolverton workers served on successive royal trains and also helped to build them and this film tells their story. The ...
37: HARRY READ TALKING

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Harry Read was a retired foreman of the Smithy in Wolverton Railway Works. He lived in Victoria Street. In 1978 he was interviewed by Paul Atkinson of the Open University for their Research Methods course. This is an extract from that interview. If you enjoy watching this film please consider clicking on the link below to ...
38: IT’S IN THE SQUARE PROCESSION 2010

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It’s in the Square was a successful 2 day music event that took place on an annual basis in the Square in Wolverton. Latterly it also included a carnival-type procession around the streets of the town. In 2010 the theme of the procession was the World Cup, which took place that year in South Africa.
39: THE SECRET GARDEN

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Andy Warner is a professional photographer and he made this film of the Secret Garden to demonstrate his film-making skills.
3: OUT OF THE ASHES

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On 1st January 1996 the Milton Keynes Museum was ravaged by a fire that destroyed many of its precious exhibits. The story of the fire and the activities at the Museum at the time were captured by students on a Living Archive Media Skills course. The purpose of the course was to teach basic IT ...
40: PAWS FOR THOUGHT DOG SHOW

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In 2016 Victoria Park Wolverton echoed to the sound of excited dogs (and their owners!) taking part in the Paws for Thought Dog Show.
41: SHOPPING AS IT USED TO BE - THE HISTORY OF THE CO-OP IN WOLVERTON

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At one point there were 13 different Co-op stores in Wolverton selling groceries, furniture, meat, shoes, clothes, hardware, radios and TVs – just about anything you would need to live. This film tells the story of this shopping phenomenon.
42: THE MK TRAILS APP

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In 2018 Living Archive Milton Keynes, Wolverton & Greenleys Town Council and Wolverton Society for Arts & Heritage collaborated in the production of 3 new walking trails around Wolverton. There are printed versions of them, but they are also accessible through a phone app for iPhone and Android devices and this version contains audio extracts ...
43: FIREWORKS 2015

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In this year of Covid, some of Wolverton’s great communal events have not been able to take place. One of these is the annual fireworks display in Western Road Rec that can attract up to 5000 people. But you can still enjoy the show, by watching this film, made by Simon Beckett, of the 2015 ...
44: IN MEMORIAM

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Marking the commemoration of the Armistice on 11th November, this film, by Mark Cunliffe, recalls the story of one of the names on the Wolverton war memorial, Private Albert French.
45: WOLVERTON REMEMBERS

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In 2018 Bev Sabey masterminded a remarkable project that commemorated the 100th year anniversary of the end of the First World War in a wonderful way.
46: DOWN THE PARK

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In 1885 the London North Western Railway Company opened a brand-new sporting facility, Wolverton Park. It comprised a football pitch, athletics tracks, velodrome, tennis courts and bowling green. For nearly a century it was the vibrant hub of sporting activity in Wolverton and North Bucks.
47: GREENLEYS FIRST SCHOOL LANTERNS 2018

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For the past few years children at Greenleys First School have worked with artists to create decorations for the railings around the Wolverton Memorial in the Square, as part of the Lantern Festival. In 2018 the theme of the Festival was The Blue Planet, inspired by the BBC Blue Planet documentary series. The most shocking ...
48: WOLVERTON’S 25th LANTERN FESTIVAL

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In 1988, as part of the celebrations for Wolverton’s 150th anniversary, a Lantern Festival was held. It proved to be so popular that people asked whether it could be annual event. And so it has been until 2020 when Coronavirus pandemic has made mass gatherings impossible. This film is of the 25th anniversary festival in 2013.
49: SECRET GARDEN ILLUMINATIONS

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In 2017, thanks to the inspiration and commitment of Chris Bridgman, visitors from far and wide were able to enjoy a magical winter evening walking through an illuminated Secret Garden in Wolverton. Simon Beckett’s atmospheric photos captured the images.
4: DESIGNING THE AGORA

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With the much-loathed Agora finally being demolished, it is worth finding out about its genesis. Chris King was a Quantity Surveyor who worked for the Milton Keynes Development Corporation. He was part of the Northern Towns team and worked with architect Wayland Tunley when he was designing the Agora. You may be surprised about what ...
50: WOLVERTON ADVENT WINDOWS

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As a fairly new arrival to Wolverton, Charlie Mountford-Hill sought to encourage local residents to create a decorated Advent Window. What started as a small event now engages many, many families in brightening up the town during the festive season.
51: THE KNITWITS DO CHRISTMAS IN THE SQUARE

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For Christmas 2020 there was not the usual Christmas tree to brighten up the Square in Wolverton, so the Knitwits decided to try and bring some Christmas cheer in these strange times….
52: WOLVERTON SENIOR CITIZENS' CHRISTMAS PARTY

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Ah, those were the days, when groups could come together, have food, drink and a knees-up and celebrate the season. Here members of Wolverton Senior Citizens’ Club, ably led by Bernard Dackombe and Bernice Taylor-Brown, have their Christmas Party.
53: COUNTRY DANCING IN THE PARK

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An annual event that brought the schools of North Bucks together in the former Wolverton Park was the Country Dancing festival. As this film by Ernie Arthur shows, it didn’t always take place in the best of weather!
54: IT'S A KNOCKOUT IN WOLVERTON PARK

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Inspired by the very popular BBC programme, local people organised their own It’s a Knockout event at Wolverton Park and it ran for 3 years attracting crowds of between 2 and 3,000 people. This film was shot by Ernie Arthur.