In a video tape cassette having upper and lower housing portions which are assembled together in a direction normal to a plane of separation therebetween to define a substantially rectangular housing with an opening extending along a side thereof between end walls of the housing for containing reels having tape wound thereon and guided between the reels in a run extending across the opening, and a lid structure which is pivotally mounted on the housing for movement by a coil spring from an open position exposing the tape run to a closed position in which the lid structure covers the tape run; the assembling of the tape cassette is facilitated by providing anchors on the lid structure by which the coil spring is initially or tentatively located during the mounting of the lid structure on one of the housing portions, whereupon the coil spring is transferred into engagement with an anchor on that one housing portion in preparation for assembling of the latter with the other housing portion. The tape cassette is further provided with a reel braking structure which is also easily installed in the direction normal to the plane of separation of the upper and lower housing portions, and which is releasable from the outside of the housing to permit free rotation of the reels.