YOU HAVE to be well into middle age to remember the wicked winter of 1947.

Even now, it's still the snowiest on record but at the time it was made worse by a chronic coal shortage.

But turn up the thermostat - the big chill of nearly half a century ago is about to come blasting back . . . to Accrington tonight.

For that epic '47 winter is one of the main events featured in the "premiM-Ore" of a new video of Accrington's past, originally captured on cinM-N film by local history enthusiast Ken Scott. Sixty-seven-year-old Ken, of Avenue Parade, Accrington, has teamed up with Rising Bridge video-maker Gordon Moore - whose writer and librarian wife, Benita, is well known as a recorder of East Lancashire's yesteryear - to provide a unique then-and-now portrait of Accrington.

The hour-and-a-half video features film was shot by Ken, a founder member of Burnley CinM-N Club, during the '40s, '50s and '60s. Together with still photographs of old Accrington, it includes glimpses of the building of the town's first Arndale shopping centre, steam trains, the old market and town centre and band concerts in Oak Hill Park.

"I made a lot of the film for own pleasure in the first place," said Ken, who worked as a calibration inspector at the Philips electronics plant in Blackburn before his retirement. But then I got to thinking that I've got all this stuff that no-one knows about and yet.

"It's history, so I thought it would be nice to have it copied so others could see it."

"One thing I remember about that 1947 winter was how cold it was and how it was almost impossible to get about because there was so much snow."

Gordon said: "It was a shame that this film was not being seen by anyone. "Most of it was shot on 16mm film and it is so accurate.

"However, it was all silent so we have dubbed sound on to it.

"Along with the editing, that alone took six weeks to do, though the whole video was a year in the making.

"We are very pleased with the results and think it gives a fascinating then-and-now contrast, as it tells the story of various parts of Accrington.

"Although it is a commercial venture, we have really made it for the people of Accrington.

"That's why we are giving a free showing of it at Accrington lIbrary."

The "premiM-Ore" of Accrington Past and Present takes place at the library tonight at 7.30pm and copies of the video, price £12.99, are on sale in Accrington town centre shops.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.