The Common Round represents one of the earliest forays into the film industry by J. Arthur Rank. Rank, a millionaire flour miller and devout member of the Methodist church, had helped form the Religious Film Society in 1933. According to Rank’s biographer, Geoffrey Macnab, the society had been set up in ‘opposition to mainstream cinema, which it abhorred’, and initially served primarily as a means of providing suitable films to show in churches, Sunday schools and to temperance societies (Macnab, 1993, 11). Recognising a shortage of suitable patriotic and religious films, Rank set up British National Films in July 1934, and amongst its earliest productions was The Common Round (Low, 1979, 146).

An article in The Times in 1936, under the heading ‘Films for Church Use’, discussed the exhibition of The Common Round: ‘The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of Croydon, and the other members of the Cinema Christian Council are inviting representatives from all denominations to attend three demonstrations of religious films for use in evangelistic work’ (The Times, 7 May 1936, 11). Sight and Sound explained that ‘each demonstration took the form of a service: hymns, led by organ and choir, and the reading of a Psalm, were followed by the new film Canterbury and The Common Round’ (Sight and Sound, Summer 1936, 56). The Times further outlined the potential benefits of these film screenings. ‘The value of films for propaganda is now being realised by Christian bodies generally’, it wrote, ‘and religious films – the majority of which are produced by the Religious Film Society – are being used more and more widely… Churches that had become almost deserted in crowded areas have taken on new life through the up to date appeal of religious films, and experiments in Sunday school teaching by means of the cinema have prepared the way for a remarkable advance in methods of bible study’ (The Times, 7 May 1936, 11).

The Common Round was thus used as part of this drive to introduce films in churches. Monthly Film Bulletin described it as ‘a good lead for the making of religious films’, while The Times referred to these initial films as ‘experimental forerunners’ (MFB, 1936, 21, The Times, 7 May 1936, 11). The presentation of these films led to much discussion on whether it was appropriate for the church to use film. The Bishop of Southwark spoke before a screening of The Common Round and argued that if the Church did not engage with cinema, it ‘would be the Church’s blame if the cinema did not become a blessing, but the reverse, to mankind’ (The Times, 15 May 1936, 11). In 1936 Dr Benjamin Gregory, a staunch critic of mainstream film in his role as the editor of the Methodist Times, travelled throughout America showing the religious film Mastershipand outlining the potential of film to ‘attract people who are unreachable by ordinary means’. Gregory announced his intention to give 2,000 free demonstrations  – using Canterbury and The Common Round – and further highlighted the continuing growth of film exhibition within churches in England, as he noted that 200 churches had already installed projectors (Daily Gleaner, 12 November 1936, 19).

The Common Round features an early appearance from Robert Adams, who had an uncredited role in Sanders of the River, and would go on to feature in a number of films set in British Africa, including King Solomon’s Mines, Old Bones of the River and Men of Two Worlds. The representation of Africa within The Common Round certainly shares much in common with these other fictional films, suggesting a commonality across fiction and missionary narratives.