In 1934, J.
Arthur Rank, Lady Yule, widow of Sir David Yule, and John Corefield,
a young producer, formed British National Films to answer a challenge that
had been given to the Methodist Church about the quality and moral standings
of films being shown to the public.
In 1935, British National released Mastership,
filmed at Merton Park at a cost of £2,700, which was a 20 minute film
shown primarily in churches. Pleased with the results, British National
produced their first feature film, Turn of the Tide. Distributors
wouldn't handle the film, and the few that finally did, attached it as the
back of a double feature.
Frustrated with the film industry, Rank
approached C. M. Woolf with the purpose of creating the General Cinema Finance
Corporation. Rank then used GCFC to buy out General Film Distributors who
were the UK distributors for Universal Pictures.
In 1936, British National bought Heatherden
Hall from contractor Charles Boot, and had it renovated into a studio and
called it Pinewood
Studio. Pinewood opened for production September 30, 1936. British National
did all their production there.
When the war started in 1939, the government requisitioned
all of the major studios for the war efforts and Pinewood was no different.
British National continued to make minor films at Welwyn and Walton Studios
until 1941.
In 1941, Rank completely reorganized his holdings and bought
Lady Yule's share of Pinewood and gave her complete ownership of British
National.
Lady Yule bought the old Neptune
Studio in Elstree
(really Boreham Wood) and continued making films until 1948 when she closed
the company. Lady Yule died in 1950.
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