Humphrey Jennings: Britain’s greatest documentary maker with Stephen Barnard
Having spent the 1930s as a poet, surrealist painter and co-founder of the Mass Observation research project, Humphrey Jennings found his true niche during the Second World War as one of the finest documentary film makers that Britain has ever produced. Rejecting a hectoring, propagandist tone in favour of a quieter, more reflective depiction of life on the home front, his films such as ‘Listen to Britain’, ‘I Was a Fireman’ and ‘A Diary for Timothy’ remain uniquely atmospheric visual records of how the war at home was experienced.
Illustrated with many excerpts from his films, this short course traces the life and work of this remarkable artist-in-celluloid, whose life was tragically cut short by a climbing accident in Greece in 1950.
Event Information
Price: £75
Course Weeks: 5
Room: Brunt Room
Campaign: Summer Term 2026
Customer Information: Pen, Paper, Device
Your Tutor
Name: Stephen Barnard
Bio: Stephen Barnard has been writing and lecturing on broadcasting, film, popular music and social history on a part-time basis for over 40 years. He has run courses for the WEA, De Montfort University, the City University and a number of Hertfordshire arts groups.
Originally a music journalist, Stephen’s writing career included a long spell with the UK arm of Reader’s Digest. His five books include ‘Studying Radio’, the standard academic textbook on the subject. He lives in Letchworth and has taught at the Settlement since 2012.
Department: Humanities