Titanic Newsreel Discovered

LONDON - A 90-year-old woman has found a rare movie newsreel of the aftermath of the 1912 Titanic disaster, after remembering that her husband had hidden it in the family's garden shed decades ago.

The newsreel, shot on 35mm film, shows survivors of the Titanic arriving on land, anxious men and women awaiting news of the liner's fate outside the Cunard offices in New York, and pictures of rescue ships.

Renee Mason, who lives in Kettering in the English Midlands, said she only remembered having the 86-year-old footage after seeing the modern blockbuster, "Titanic."

The Titanic sank April 14, 1912, on its maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, killing more than 1,500 of the 2,200 passengers and crew.

The footage is expected to be auctioned by Christie's later this year.

After seeing the film, Mason said she dreamed she heard a voice telling her where the film was kept.

"I got up early Sunday morning, went in the hut - had to move a lot of things - and looked under the bench," where she found the film in a rusting, 15-inch metal casing.

Mason said her late husband, Archie, was a former movie projectionist and was given the news footage shortly after the ship sank.

One scene from the footage shows a group of half-a-dozen survivors in their bulky life jackets. One man passes out as the camera focuses on the group. Other scenes show pictures of journalists in starch collars and bowler hats with note pads in hand, ready to report the latest news.

The footage is interspersed with white on black captions reporting such events as "Society Women Bringing Clothing For Survivors To Cunard Docks," and "The Crowds at the White Star Office, New York, Awaiting News."

Mason said she was delighted by the newsreel.

"I never thought I should see it, but it is beautiful, marvelous," she said.