Courtesy of Scottish Screen Archive

The annual textile works' outing, known as Sma' Shot day, was traditionally held on the first Saturday in July. The excursion and the day's holiday was a privilege won by all workers at the Paisley thread mills. Textile manufacture was Paisley's main industry. The film of the outing was commissioned by Walter Hinks, manager of the town's New Alexandra Cinema, to be used as a promotional device, anticipating that the workers and their families would flock to the cinema for the screening a few days later to see themselves on the big screen.

The 1934 outing attracted 1500 excursionists in a 3 mile long line of buses, ensuring a large captive audience for the film when it was presented at the local picture house. Hinks was an accomplished publicist, winning industry awards for his ingenious and effective publicity stunts for the cinema.

Kenneth Broom

Click titles to see or read more