One of the greatest British films of all time is on BBC Two today | Films | Entertainment
Back in 1970, Lionel Jeffries wrote and directed the film adaptation of E Nesbit’s 1906 novel The Railway Children. The Edwardian-set classic starred Jenny Agutter as Bobbie, two years after she played the same role in a TV version. Co-starring Bernard Cribbins, the film follows three siblings whose father is falsely imprisoned for espionage. Financially ruined, the family leaves London for a country cottage, where the kids befriend the staff and passengers at a nearby railway station.
A British classic, The Railway Children came 66th in the Top 100 British films of all time, as ranked by the BFI in 1999. Five years later, Total Film magazine named the film 46th greatest British film of the 20th century. In 2000, Agutter played the mother’s role in a new TV adaptation of the story, before reprising her original part as Bobbie in the film sequel, 2022’s The Railway Children Return, which is set in World War 2.
