On Saturday 24 October Legacies of War and Gateways to the First World War hosted a screening of Dawn (1928) at Hyde Park Picture House in Leeds. Dawn is a silent film about Edith Cavell, the British nurse who was executed 100 years ago in German-occupied Brussels for aiding the escape of Allied soldiers during WWI. Directed by war veteran Herbert Wilcox, Dawn stars stage actress Sybil Thorndike as a Cavell in a performance beyond cliché. Despite its sombre realism and anti-war message, the production triggered a diplomatic crisis involving the German Embassy, the British Foreign Office, the Cabinet and the British Board of Film Censors.
The event featured an introduction and live music by Darius Battiwalla and talks from Dr Emma Cavell, Professor Alison Fell and Dr Claudia Sternberg.
Find out more about the event in this video by Professor Paul Cooke.
Edith Cavell In The Cinema from Paul Cooke on Vimeo.
