[KenRa Films Present: the Kenneth Rankine Home Movie Collection: Reel 17. Olympic Pool 1943] [excerpt]

Kenneth Carruthers Rankine (1890 - 1968) was a keen amateur cinematographer and filmmaker. This collection of his home movies has been donated to ACMI by Kenneth’s granddaughter. The collection represents a wonderful slice of life in Australia; with contents including scenes of everyday life, major family occasions, holidays around Victoria and views of Melbourne.

This excerpt taken from the complete work on Reel 17, shows people enjoying the water and sunshine at the former State Swimming Centre (now demolished) in Batman Avenue, Melbourne. Being 1943, those enjoying the Olympic-sized pool and its facilities include soldiers in uniform as well as those displaying the various swimwear styles of the 1940s. There are sequences of diving from the high diving-boards, underwater scenes, and people sunbaking, swimming and enjoying themselves. The footage also shows glimpses of landmark buildings of Melbourne at the time, the pool and some of its surrounding seating and walkways. Three landmark Melbourne buildings in the background; St Paul’s Cathedral, the Forum Theatre, and the T&G Building (Temperance and General Building).

The open-air Olympic Pool (formally known as the State Swimming Centre) was built by the Melbourne City Council, and opened in Batman Avenue, Melbourne in 1935. It was Melbourne’s first Olympic-sized pool, and was also known as the Beaurepaire Pool (named after champion swimmer Sir Frank Beaurepaire who was also Melbourne’s Lord Mayor 1940-1942).