11/06/2026
A few weeks ago we were saddened to hear of the passing of Jim Moore. Jim was a school caretaker in Much Wenlock, Shropshire for many years, as well as a tireless fundraising marathon-runner. We interviewed him back in 2023 for Echoes of the Soil, Brian Harley’s film about the making of Powell and Pressburger’s Gone to Earth.
Jim had been evacuated to Shropshire from the Liverpool docks in 1941, and he told us how this realm of timbered cottages and apple orchards felt like another planet. His family moved to Wenlock permanently after the war, and in 1949 a glamorous Technicolor film shoot arrived in town. As Jim tells it in the film, he and his friend were climbing on the roof of the Memorial Hall on the night of the local auditions when ‘the man himself’ - director Michael Powell - called them down and recruited them as extras. (Pictured: Jim and friend in their ‘street urchin’ costumes.)
The film includes more tales of Jim’s exploits including his encounter with the film’s star Jennifer Jones. As part of the project we were able to screen Gone to Earth back in Wenlock over seventy years after its production, with a number of locals sharing their memories of the summer when Hollywood came to their high street.
It was a huge privilege getting to hear those stories, and a delight to spend time with Jim. Sending love to his family and friends.
