Every so often, a new roller label surfaces from the murky history of Britain’s 8mm under-the-counter trade — and recently, Conquest Films caught me by surprise. A small batch of films appeared without warning on eBay. They sold almost instantly, but thanks to the generosity of a collector named RonnieX, I was able to glean more information.
Judging from the haircuts of the perfomers featured in the box images, Conquest Films seems to date from around 1969 or 1970, though hand-crafted nature of the box suggests a late-60s origin. What’s most striking is how closely the artwork and copy resemble the earliest releases from Excelsior Films — one of the known labels tied to John Darby and shot by John Lindsay. the layout of the packaging echoes Excelsior’s early ‘cut and paste’ aesthetic before things got slicker in the 1970s. The eagle-eyed RonnieX spotted that the rollers look to have been shot in a location used by Climax Films, and one of the tattoed men likely appeared in the roller In My Mouth(1969); an unbranded film from Martin Granby, again suggesting a late 1960s date.
Conquest Films serves as a reminder that there’s always more still to uncover.
If you’ve got any more information on Conquest Films — or, better still, a reel tucked away somewhere — I’d love to hear from you.
Here’s a list of known titles:
| Title | Year | Producer |
|---|---|---|
| Kinky Fucker | 1969-70 | John Darby/John Lindsay? |
| Birthday Party | 1969-70 | John Darby/John Lindsay? |
| Mass-Debate | 1969-70 | John Darby/John Lindsay? |
