The Railway Children
The railway, the children... and the wonderful secret they'll share with you!
1970 • 109 min • Drama · Family
Synopsis
At the dawn of the 20th century, following their father's arrest on suspicion of betraying state secrets, the three Waterbury children—Bobbie, Phyllis and Peter—move with their mother to Yorkshire, where they find themselves involved in unexpected dramas along the railway by their new home.
Our family guide
Best from age 7- 100 Reviewers · 3 · 53%
- 67 Audience · 103 · 47%
After their father is wrongly accused, three Edwardian children move with their mother to the countryside. There, they find adventure and friendship near a railway line, ultimately working to clear their father's name.
- Violence & peril
- 1/10
- Language
- 1/10
- Drinking, drugs & smoking
- 0/10
- Romance & sensuality
- 0/10
- Scary moments
- 2/10
Heads up
- A child is injured
- Children face hardship
What it models well
- Family loyalty
- Kindness to strangers
- Perseverance
Talk about it after
- Injustice and false accusations
- Making new friends
- Life in the early 1900s
Written by the Movie Knight editorial team for The Railway Children. Our own words, our own scoring — always double-check against your family's standards.
Where to watch
Free
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Top billed cast
Director: Lionel Jeffries • Crew: Lionel Jeffries, Robert Lynn
Trailers & clips
The Railway Children (1970) ORIGINAL TRAILER
2022 Re-Release Trailer
THE RAILWAY CHILDREN - 'Now and Then' Documentary
Reviewer notes
RecommendedA well-to-do suburban family suddenly get a visitor one evening; their father is taken away and their lives turned topsy-turvy. They relocate to "Three Chimneys" a ramshackle house beside a railway line in Yorkshire where they slowly settle into a new life making friends as they go. Bernard Cribbins steals this as the permanently chirpy station porter “Mr.…
RecommendedTrusted family reviewersA film version of another one of those children's classic novels from the early 20th century. The younger actors from necessity need to carry a movie like this, and I thought they did a grand job. They don’t overact much at all, and are sometimes subtle with a witty line or childlike observation.…
RecommendedTrusted family reviewersIt's like we're in a besieged castle, the arrows of the foe striking against the battlements. Adapted from E. Nesbit's much adored novel, this filmic version is directed by Lionel Jeffries and stars Dinah Sheridan, Bernard Cribbins, William Mervyn, Iain Cuthbertson, Jenny Agutter, Sally Thomsett and Gary Warren. Music is by Johnny Douglas and cinematography by Arthur Ibbetson.…
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Gallery
Details
- TMDB audience
- 6.7/10 (103)
- Age rating
- G
- Status
- Released
- Budget
- $375,000
- Franchise
- The Railway Children Collection
- IMDb
- tt0066279
