Rare 1930s footage of pioneering Scottish female pilot to be set to live music at HippFest

The footage, part of a series of short films to be shown in tandem at the HippFest silent film festival in Bo’ness which begins next week, shows pilot Winnie Drinkwater preparing for flight.

The Near Shore: A Scottish and Irish Cine-Concert, shows a series of short films about life in Scotland and Ireland, accompanied by a live performance from avant-guard improvisational pianist, Paul Smyth.

Ms Drinkwater, then just 20 years old, was the world’s first woman commercial airline pilot and Scotland’s first female licensed aircraft engineer.

The footage of Ms Drinkwater is one of a collection of five amateur films made by Irish people about Scotland and vice versa shown together at the event, compiled by Sunniva O’Flynn, head of Irish film programming at the Irish Film Institute.

The movie, made by a filmmaker known only as Mr Dick, opens with scenes at Renfrew airport where Ms Drinkwater and a male pilot are seen preparing for the flight.

Ms Drinkwater worked with Midland and Scottish Air Ferries, where she requested and secured equal pay with her male counterparts.

While in Ireland, Mr Dick also filmed in the busy city of Galway and in the less photographed smaller towns of Dundalk, Westport, Ballina, Sligo and also in Londonderry (Derry).

Another film to be shown as part of the Near Shore compilation is one of an 1899 yacht race made by a Belfast chemist Dr Robert A Mitchell.

The footage was long thought to be the first film made by an Irish filmmaker in an Irish location on Belfast Lough, but HippFest’s historians found out it was actually shot at the Royal Clyde Yacht Club Regatta at Hunter’s Quay, in Scotland’s Firth of Clyde.

Another of the short films documents the honeymoon journey in 1958 of amateur filmmaker Ernest Tiernan and his young wife Kathleen from Scotland to a small farm in Cornamuckla, Co Leitrim, home of her Irish relations.

Formally known as the Hippodrome Silent Film Festival, HippFest’s 2025 programme will celebrate more than 100 years of filmmaking from cinematographers across the globe.

Audiences will be transported back to the golden age of cinema with a programme packed with the stars of the silver screen. Mary Pickford, Laurel and Hardy and the timeless talent of Buster Keaton will all be on show on the big screen, while behind the camera Hippfest explores the early works of Hollywood giants including Alfred Hitchcock and John Ford.

Beyond the big names, HippFest delves into the corners of silent cinema to bring rare prints and little known gems to contemporary audiences with the organisers confident that there’s something for everyone to enjoy over the five days.

But it’s not just about film, audiences are invited to discover the historical significance of the Forth and Clyde Canal to the region with a Rosebank Distillery Tour, at 10am on Thursday, March 20. Enjoy a guided tour of the newly restored Rosebank Distillery with tutored tasting of Glengoyne and Tamdhu single malt whiskies at an exclusive HippFest-only price.

From brand new films, to the next generation of silent film accompanists, New Found Sound invites young musicians from Falkirk district schools to compose, arrange and perform new scores for Scottish archive shorts.

This year’s playful compilation is a far from sleepy Sunday morning comedy, with shorts and animations that are bound to tickle your fancy - expect hijacks and high jinks. Taking place on March 23 from 10am.

Festival director, Alison Strauss, said: “The team and I are thrilled to be sharing this superlative line-up of silent films presented with unrivalled live music accompaniment.

“We are proud that HippFest has reached this milestone edition, and can take its place alongside the best arts festivals that Scotland has to offer, cultivating an international and ever-growing community of people with an adventurous appetite for extraordinary cinema.”

Sambrooke Scott, head of audience development at Screen Scotland said: “HippFest is a one-of-a-kind celebration of silent cinema, bringing rare cinema gems to life through wonderful live musical scores performed by fantastic musicians from Scotland and beyond.”

HippFest, which is in its 15th year, takes place from March 19 to 23. Find out more at www.hippodromecinema.co.uk/hippfest