The Curious Character of Corby

This is a lovely surprise, a vintage BBC documentary on a new town in pristine condition.


The Curious Character of Britain was a 12 part BBC documentary series from 1970. A Long Way From Home was an episode all about Corby, the Nothamptonshire steelworks town that was designated a new town in 1950. Writer/director Alan Bell created a really beautiful documentary here, weaving in the voices of locals – and those locals came from Scotland and across the world – with narrator Michael Cronin.

This beautiful 1970 documentary is followed by a rather more straightforward 2007 Inside Out BBC film on the town, retelling the story of the Scottish steelworkers and the birth of the new town.