The Hive to screen little-known masterpiece The Battle of the Ancre and Advance of the Tanks

This year, Imperial War Museums (IWM) and the Worcestershire World War One Hundred team are working together to show the film The Battle of the Ancre and Advance of the Tanks (1917) to audiences across the world.

The film will be shown at The Hive on Thursday 4 October at 5.30pm. Composer Laura Rossi, who has been commissioned to create the score by the Imperial War Museum will give a special pre-screening talk about her work and her on-going collaboration with IWM.

The Battle of the Ancre and the Advance of The Tanks is a little-known masterpiece of British non-fiction cinema which documents the autumn and winter stages of the Somme campaign on the Western Front. Including the first ever scenes of tanks in battle, the film also conveys, with power and artistry, the difficulties experienced by the British Army as it fought on over ground beset in a sea of mud.

Over one hundred years later, this unique film from IWM’s collection, is being shown to commemorate the centenary of the end of the First World War.

Adrian Gregson, Worcestershire World War One Hundred Project Manager said: “This is an opportunity for people across the County to watch a film that gives a unique insight into the final stages of the Great War. We are delighted that for this first screening we will be joined by Laura Rossi whose wonderful score brings the film to life. As part of our programme this screening is free and we hope to see a full house on Thursday 4 October at The Hive.”

Led by the Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service, the Worcestershire World War One Hundred programme received one of the largest Heritage Lottery Fund Grants outside of London, and over the last four years has been commemorating the role Worcestershire played in World War One, telling the stories of Worcestershire people, their involvement with and personal legacy from the War.

Book your tickets for The Battle of the Ancre and Advance of the Turks here.