Snow White's original London release

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was first released in the UK in the New Gallery theater in Regent street, London on February 24, 1938. During its initial run, the following special souvenir program, here reproduced in its entirety, was handed out.

From it, we learn many things about how the movie and how it was shown : it ran every week day from 11.30 am until 9.30 pm and at 6 and 8.30 pm on Sundays.

The presentation of the feature was preceded by two educational shorts Fruits in Jamaica and Kings in Exile which surrounded the British Movietone news.

To Snow White enthusiasts, the real treasures are in the details revealed by the ads contained in the program. After the show, kids could go to Hamleys, also in Regent street, to buy a Snow White doll with her seven little friends which all came in several sizes.

Arthur Sanderson & sons Ltd. also produced wallpaper, nursery friezes, wrapping paper, etc. all featuring the characters of the film.

Last but not least, the valuable information contained on the back cover reveals that the famous original 3 record soundtrack of the film hit the shelves March 11, 1938, to coincide with the film's general release in the country the next day.

The film was preceded by this censorship message that warned audiences that the film had been classified "A" for adult audiences, as the film was judged too frightening for children.

Some scenes were indeed later cut in countries like Sweden for instance, and to this day, scenes with the hag or in the forest still continue to impress youngsters. However the board's decision here only meant that children under 16 were to be accompanied by an adult and according to JB Kaufman's research, the decision was overruled by individual British counties anyway.
Articles about the film had started to appear in the British press months before the event and this one in Picturegoer even announces Bambi as the next feature as early as December 25, 1937.

The editor of the magazine even writes an open letter to Disney to explain the censorship board's initial decision the very day of the premiere.

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Happy Holidays everyone!
That's all for today, folks!