Old Police Box Pictures

[Mark]

[quoteFunny you should say that.  I passed by this site on the bus tonight and thought how grim and tatty it looked.][/quote]

The price of progress 

I checked out the link to the picture you posted Starcross, and three more pictures you have hiding there 

Had a quick lookie around that site and there are some films, only checked one from 1962 "All Mighty Heart" and counted 3 police posts and at 15:40 a police box near the zoo.

How innocent a picture of the 60's the film portrays.

[starcross]

Had a quick lookie around that site and there are some films, only checked one from 1962 "All Mighty Heart" and counted 3 police posts and at 15:40 a police box near the zoo.

The London Transport Museum website is very nice. Just think about what they haven't digitized yet.
In regards to their photo section, there are more in photographs of police boxes than the one I posted.
If you search Police box in Photos you get three separate results.

The trick is to search for areas that you know had a police box and look around in the Background.
I've found police posts by the underground entrances by searching not for "police post" but for "entrance".
It is surprising how much information isn't tagged, if they allowed people to add tags it would increase search accuracy.

As for the films, I haven't looked at them yet, but I see what you mean.
The buses pass quite a bit of interesting street furniture.

British Pathe is also really good for films, they are better about identifying the Police Boxes and such however.
There are four films on that site that I recall having Boxes or Posts.

As organizations digitize their collections I think we'll see more of this sort of incidental stuff pop up.
Because its obvious this stuff wasn't available when it was in a dusty restricted access collection in a library or archive somewhere.

Cheers. 

[Mark]

I hear what you are saying about stuff not always being tagged. Mildly annoying nut if someone had to sit and write everything in a film they would be there forever!

Sometimes I actually find it a great achievement when police box hunting to eventually find something that wouldn't be found by typing "police box" and took a bit of detective work.

British Pathe is a good one, some good footage at Wimbledom Common and there was a film I looked at which shows a Police Post being used, think it was something like "I am a police man" or possibly about catching robbers. Can't remember as it was ages ago I checked by there.

I agree about new stuff popping up. I would have to presume that somewhere still in existence, there are loads of photos and possibly films of every single Police box and post in the country. The amount I've seen in the background of Bus or Tram collections.

As long as dedicated people like yourself and other member round these parts continue the quest, we have a chance.

[milner08]

Hey all, I was browsing some history sites the other day when I came across some images of police boxes Im not sure if youve seen them before, but thought some people may like to see them





Tom M

[lorisarvendu]

An excellent couple of finds!  It's noticeable that all the photographs you find with Police Boxes in, are never photographs that are taken of the police box.  In the same way today that nobody would take a photo of a set of traffic lights, or a BT phone booth, Police boxes were so much a part of the background of the London street, they were almost invisible. 

Hence in the second of your photos, the photographer would never have said "Hang on, I'll just move a couple of inches to the left so the pole isn't in the way of the Police Box..."

Which in a way is a shame, but in another sense lucky, because if they were more obtrusive you'd probably have had the photographer saying "Hang on, I'll just move so that damn box isn't in shot..." and we'd have even less old pictures.

[Mark]

You'd have thought that from the mid 60's the police box would have been the center of attention when Doctor Who originally took off.

[lorisarvendu]

You're right.  I lived in London up until moving to Essex in 1969 (when I was 7).  There was one down the bottom of our road and I can still remember the feeling of walking past it and just knowing the Doctor was in there!

It stood on the corner of Edgeware Road and Springfield Mount, London NW9, and I've been told it was demolished after a lorry ran into it soon after I left.  Here's a picture of the site. I'm pretty certain it was in front of the green BT box, where that inspection cover is on the pavement.

[galacticprobe]

Another interesting thing to note in these photos: the police box has blue window frames. Most of the old photos are showing boxes with white window frames.

So not only were the box dims different from box to box as discussed earlier, but the color of the window frames also seem to differ depending on who painted/repainted the box. (Even more reasons to explain why the TARDIS got it wrong - too many choices. Could also explain why her appearance changed in the Classic Series; she kept trying to adjust it and eventually after ending up with blue windows one day said "What the heck? I'll just make everything blue, even the phone panel.")

Dino.

[milner08]

By the way I found those pictures here

http://www.histomil.com/viewtopic.php?f=95&t=1841#ixzz1kbHNUQwB

The big picture had a caption of "Here's another old Police Box for your delectation.
London 1939. An air raid siren post is being sited by the box..." So not much help in identifying its location :/

TM

[gerald lovell]

From the 1937 film, The Squeaker:



The way this is lit up, the overall size and the design of the windows makes this one look very much like a new series TARDIS.  Maybe this box was built for the film (which was made at Denham Studios by London Films).

[Mark]

You are definately right about the windows, very new series. Looking at the inside where the sign boxes should be makes me think it was a prop that and the fact the sign panel is smaller than the distance of the windows. The real boxes had signs which where almost the same length as the distance from either side of the windows except Scottish versions.

Nice find though. Very atmospheric.

[petewilson]

Hi,

It's great to see this thread has taken on a new lease of life! 
Somewhere I have a DVD (I think it's one of those "Look back at a Decade" themed ones) It had a bonus feature which featured a west indian gentleman on a bus ride in the 1950's The bus went past at least 2 police boxes (one was out in the middle of nowhere)
I've checked several of my old DVD's but can't find it! 
Also there's a Police box featured on the "Charley Sais" (Public Service adverts) DVD (again I can't remember if it's vol 1 or vol 2)

Another question.....what other  early 1960's standalone everyday object could the TARDIS of been?

Not a GPO phone box (too transparent!)
The only other feasible object I could think of was a AA (or RAC?) Emergency Phone Box!

Regards,

Pete

[Mark]

Now that's an interesting one.

Looking at the two examples you have shown, they both have some nice Police Box type characteristics.

The AA one has the beveled base and a nice bit on the top for a lamp, while the RAC one is nicely blue with a stacked and pitched roof.

I guess the old GPO canvas tent things would have been possible although a little flimsy, Daleks and Cybermen would have had a field day, or perhaps one of those old railway huts that were dotted around the track side. They used to be wooden I think and were used by chaps working on the track for storage and tea breaks.

[fedora]

I have to agree with you there mark they do have TARDIS characteristics .

[starcross]

I went digging for Photos of Glasgow boxes today, hopefully there will be some that we haven't posted before.
I've included the source I found each photo, please do visit the source site they have some interesting information.

I like this one, because it has an interesting overhead wire setup that I haven't seen before.
"Dalmarnock terminus beside a 'Tardis' police public call box, 1 June 1962."
Source: The Crich tramway village news blog


"Queen's Cross Vaults from 1960"
Source


"south looking down Maryhill Road and Garscube Road 1980s"
Source


"Police Box at Lyon Street and Garscube Road"
Source


This is the last in a series of ten photos of a schemel scarab turning the corner.
"Buchanan Street Police Box at Cathedral Street"
Source: Urban Glasgow Forum