AMAZING 80 year old footage of the opening of a Worcester park is to be shown on television.

Brian Hewlett discovered the seven-minute recording of the opening of Gheluvelt Park, Barbourne, at his home in Chapel Road, Kempsey. It was filmed on June 17, 1922 and belonged to his granddad who worked at a cinema.

Mr Hewlett did not know what was on the reel so he handed it to the BBC.

Cathy Houghton, producer of BBC Midlands Today's Passing Time with historian Carl Chinn, said the film was sent o a specialist to transfer it to a broadcast quality tape before it was verified with the county council's Record's Office.

The fascinating footage can be seen at 6.30pm tomorrow. on Midlands Today.

from 6.30pm and 7.00pm.

Once this was done the footage then had to be verified that it was in actual fact the opening of the park with the county council's Record's Office.

"It was about the oldest piece of footage that we had in and it was really magnificent," said Mrs Houghton. "It was fascinating to watch."

She added that much of the film - of dignitaries, soldiers, policeman and many members of the public - consisted of repeat shots.

"Everything that was on the film I have used but obviously not in its total quantity," she said.

The park, opened by Field Marshall the Rt Hon Earl of Ypres, was named in honour of the 2nd Bn The Worcestershire Regiment for its heroism in a First World War battle near the Belgium village of Gheluvelt.

During the First Battle of Ypres, on October 31, 1914, 2nd Bn The Worcestershire charged around 1,000 yards under heavy fire, before digging in and halting the German advance and allowing regiments, which had previously been scattered, to regroup and defend the British frontline along the Menin Road, outside Ypres.

The footage can be seen tomorrow night on BBC Midlands Today from 6.30pm and 7.00pm.