By RACHEL SPENCER

AN AVID film maker from Lymm is looking for people in the village to help him find footage of the village after the Second World War.

Alan William's film, entitled A Winter's Tale, captures the growth of the village throughout the 20th century with cuts from old films, interviews and photographs that he has collated, focusing particularly on the hard winters during the war.

Alan has received lots of help and material but has drawn one surprising blank!

"We've some wonderful wartime film, skaters on the dam, children building igloos, and lots of the winter of 1963 but there is a lack of material for 1947 which sticks in many people's memories as the harshest of all," he said.

"According to cuttings from the Warrington Guardian, fuel was in such short supply that people were told to turn off all their heating and things got so bad that villagers were in danger of prosecution for cutting down trees to keep warm! There must be something out there!"

Alan already has footage of beauty spot Lymm Dam in the bitter winter of 1941 and 1942, showing scenes of the village 10 feet deep in snow, and people skating on the dam, and other films dating back to 1938 with villagers decked out in tweed jackets, shirts and ties!

And he has interviewed four elderly residents, with ages ranging from 70 to 93, about their memories including 93-year-old Grace Bailey who lived in the village for 92 years, who tells tales of her time in Lymm and her mother's memories from the Victorian period.

Now Alan is working flat out to have the new film ready for the one day film festival at the Statham Lodge Hotel on June 12 which forms part of the annual Lymm Festival, staring on June 9.

The event will be provide an opportunity for filmmakers in the region, both amateur and professional, to show their documentary and archive films.

Last year's film was a massive success, selling 1,250 copies and helped to raise more than £6,000 for local causes.

Anyone who can help Alan can contact him on 754080 or at lymmfilm@aol.com