Battle of Britain Theme

Uploaded by STEVEN ANG on September 17, 2020 at 2:14 pm

Battle of Britain Theme

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Battle of Britain
American release poster By source:www.impawards.com, Fair use, Link
Directed by	Guy Hamilton
Produced by	Harry Saltzman Benjamin Fisz
Written by	James Kennaway Wilfred Greatorex
Starring	Harry Andrews Michael Caine Trevor Howard Curt Jürgens Ian McShane Kenneth More Laurence Olivier Nigel Patrick Christopher Plummer Michael Redgrave Ralph Richardson Robert Shaw Patrick Wymark Susannah York
Music by	Ron Goodwin William Walton
Cinematography	Freddie Young
Edited by	Bert Bates
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date	15 September 1969
Running time	133 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English German
Budget	$14 million
Box office	$13 million

Battle of Britain is a 1969 British Second World War film directed by Guy Hamilton, and produced by Harry Saltzman and S. Benjamin Fisz. The film documented the events of the Battle of Britain. The film drew many respected British actors to accept roles as key figures of the battle, including Sir Laurence Olivier as Sir Hugh Dowding and Trevor Howard as Keith Park. It also starred Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer and Robert Shaw as Squadron Leaders. The script by James Kennaway and Wilfred Greatorex was based on the book The Narrow Margin by Derek Wood and Derek Dempster.

The film endeavoured to be an accurate account of the Battle of Britain, when in the summer and autumn of 1940 the British RAF inflicted a strategic defeat on the Luftwaffe and so ensured the cancellation of Operation Sea Lion – Adolf Hitler's plan to invade Britain. The film is notable for its spectacular flying sequences, in contrast with the unsatisfactory model work seen in Angels One Five (1952). It was on a far larger scale than had been seen on film before and this made the film's production very expensive.

https://youtu.be/XmjKODQYYfg

Aircraft

CC BY-SA 2.0, Link.

HA-1112 Buchón in 2015, still sporting the livery worn during filming of the Battle of Britain. It was also used in the 2017 film Dunkirk

The film required a large number of period aircraft. In September 1965 producers Harry Saltzman and S. Benjamin Fisz contacted former RAF Bomber Command Group Captain T.G. 'Hamish' Mahaddie to find the aircraft and arrange their use. Eventually 100 aircraft were employed, called the "35th largest air force in the world". With Mahaddie's help, the producers located 109 Spitfires in the UK, of which 27 were available although only 12 could be made flyable. Mahaddie negotiated use of six Hawker Hurricanes, of which three were flying. The film helped preserve these aircraft, including a rare Spitfire Mk II which had been a gate guardian at RAF Colerne in Wiltshire.

During the actual aerial conflict, all RAF Spitfires were Spitfire Mk I and Mark II variants. However, only one Mk Ia and one Mk IIa (the latter with a Battle of Britain combat record) could be made airworthy, so the producers had to use seven other different marks, all of them built later in the war. To achieve commonality, the production made some modifications to "standardise" the Spitfires, including adding elliptical wingtips, period canopies and other changes. To classic aircraft fans, they became known as "Mark Haddies" (a play on Grp. Capt. Mahaddie's name). A pair of two-seat trainer Spitfires were camera platforms to achieve realistic aerial footage inside the battle scenes. Lieutenant Maurice Hynett, RN, on leave from duties at Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough flew a number of spitfire sequences in the film, including one of the opening scenes which features a single Spitfire in flight. A rare Hawker Hurricane XII had been restored by Canadian Bob Diemert, who flew the aircraft in the film. Eight non-flying Spitfires and two Hurricanes were set dressing, with one Hurricane able to taxi.

A North American B-25 Mitchell N6578D, flown by pilots John "Jeff" Hawke and Duane Egli, was the primary filming platform for the aerial sequences. It was fitted with camera positions in what were formerly the aircraft's nose, tail and waist gun positions. An additional camera, on an articulating arm, was mounted in the aircraft's bomb bay and allowed 360-degree shots from below the aircraft. The top gun turret was replaced with a clear dome for the aerial director, who would co-ordinate the other aircraft by radio.

N6578D was painted garishly for line-up references and to make it easier for pilots to determine which way it was manoeuvring. When the brightly coloured aircraft arrived at Tablada airbase in Spain in early afternoon of 18 March 1968, the comment from Derek Cracknell, the assistant director, was "It's a bloody great psychedelic monster!" The aircraft was henceforth dubbed the Psychedelic Monster. The Luftwaffe armada included over 50 real aircraft. (screenshot)

For the German aircraft, the producers obtained 32 CASA 2.111 twin-engined bombers, a Spanish-built version of the German Heinkel He 111H-16.

https://youtu.be/WTY6swvHkwk

They also located 27 Hispano Aviación HA-1112 M1L 'Buchon' single-engined fighters, a Spanish version of the German Messerschmitt Bf 109. The Buchons were altered to look more like correct Bf 109Es, adding mock machine guns and cannon, and redundant tailplane struts, and removing the rounded wingtips. The Spanish aircraft were powered by British Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, and thus almost all the aircraft used, British and German alike, were Merlin-powered.

https://youtu.be/Sp-aFAhjml0

After the film, one HA-1112 was donated to the German Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr, and converted to a Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 variant, depicting the insignias of German ace Gustav Rödel.

Two Heinkels and the 17 flyable Messerschmitts (including one dual-controlled HA-1112-M4L two-seater, used for conversion training and as a camera ship), were flown to England to complete the shoot. In the scene where the Polish training squadron breaks off to attack (the "Repeat, please" sequence), the three most distant Hurricanes were Buchons marked as Hurricanes, as there were not enough flyable Hurricanes. In addition to the combat aircraft, two Spanish-built Junkers Ju 52 transports were used.

By Screenshot - Fair use, Link

Use of RAF bases including Duxford lent an air of authenticity.

Filming in England was at Duxford, Debden, North Weald and Hawkinge, all operational stations in 1940 – one surviving First World War "Belfast" hangar at Duxford was blown up and demolished for the Eagle Day sequence. Some filming also took place at Bovingdon, a former wartime bomber airfield. The title sequence scene, showing a review of German bombers on the ground by Fieldmarshal Milch, was filmed at Tablada Airfield in Spain. Stunt coordinator Wilson Connie Edwards retained a Mark IX Spitfire, six Buchons, and a P-51 Mustang in lieu of payment, which were stored in Texas until sold to collectors in 2014.

https://youtu.be/Wn6W7lXCN3k

The village of Chilham in Kent became the base of operations for the radio controllers in the film. Denton, another Kent village, and its pub, The Jackdaw Inn, features in the film as the location where Christopher Plummer and his on-screen wife argue about her relocating closer to his posting. The Jackdaw Inn has a room devoted to an extensive collection of RAF Second World War memorabilia.

Another early scene was the Dunkirk recreation which was shot at the beachfront in Huelva, Spain. To reflect the cloudless skies of summer of 1940, many upward-facing shots were filmed over Spain, while downward-facing shots were almost all below the clouds, over southern England, where farmland is distinctive. However 1940 camouflage made it difficult to see the aircraft against the ground and sky, so a cloud background was used where possible. Only one Spitfire was relocated to Spain to stand in for the RAF defenders. After filming began, the English weather proved too unreliable and filming was moved to Hal Far and Luqa Airfields in Malta to complete the aerial sequences.

Numerous scenes were shot in the preserved operations rooms, illustrating the operation of the Dowding system that controlled the fighter squadrons. Much of this footage takes place in 11 Group's operations room, today preserved as the Battle of Britain Bunker. Other scenes take place in Fighter Command's central "filter room" as well as recreations of the squadron ops rooms. One scene shows the hit on Biggin Hill's ops room, and another shows its relocation to a local bakery, although this is a recreation of another squadron's backup room in a local butcher's shop.

https://youtu.be/4WRI0qA-tOg

Location filming in London was carried out mainly in the St Katharine Docks area where older houses were being demolished for housing estates. Partly demolished buildings represented bombed houses and disused buildings were set on fire. St Katharine Docks was one of the few areas of London's East End to survive the Blitz. Many extras were survivors of the Blitz. Aldwych tube station, used as a wartime air-raid shelter, was also used as a filming location. Almost all the period equipment from the London Fire Brigade Museum was used in the film. The night scenes of wartime Berlin were filmed in Donostia-San Sebastian, Basque Country. The scenes at RAF Fighter Command were filmed at RAF Bentley Priory, the headquarters of Fighter Command. Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding's original office, with the original furniture, was used.

https://youtu.be/BV1ZuJbTlus

The film is generally faithful to events and, although merging some characters, it sticks to the orthodox view – that the Germans threw away strategic advantage by switching bombing from RAF airfields to London in revenge for RAF raids on Berlin.

THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN (1969) | Official Trailer

https://youtu.be/4d86cHhp65Y

Watch the movie

https://youtu.be/dmsXyJgzk-8

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Battle of Britain
American release poster By source:www.impawards.com, Fair use, Link
Directed by	Guy Hamilton
Produced by	Harry Saltzman Benjamin Fisz
Written by	James Kennaway Wilfred Greatorex
Starring	Harry Andrews Michael Caine Trevor Howard Curt Jürgens Ian McShane Kenneth More Laurence Olivier Nigel Patrick Christopher Plummer Michael Redgrave Ralph Richardson Robert Shaw Patrick Wymark Susannah York
Music by	Ron Goodwin William Walton
Cinematography	Freddie Young
Edited by	Bert Bates
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date	15 September 1969
Running time	133 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English German
Budget	$14 million
Box office	$13 million

The film endeavoured to be an accurate account of the Battle of Britain, when in the summer and autumn of 1940 the British RAF inflicted a strategic defeat on the Luftwaffe and so ensured the cancellation of Operation Sea Lion – Adolf Hitler‘s plan to invade Britain. The film is notable for its spectacular flying sequences, in contrast with the unsatisfactory model work seen in Angels One Five (1952). It was on a far larger scale than had been seen on film before and this made the film’s production very expensive.

Eagle Day: The RAF's Last Stand Against The Luftwaffe | Battle Of Britain | Timeline

Aircraft

CC BY-SA 2.0, Link.

HA-1112 Buchón in 2015, still sporting the livery worn during filming of the Battle of Britain. It was also used in the 2017 film Dunkirk

The film required a large number of period aircraft. In September 1965 producers Harry Saltzman and S. Benjamin Fisz contacted former RAF Bomber Command Group Captain T.G. ‘Hamish’ Mahaddie to find the aircraft and arrange their use. Eventually 100 aircraft were employed, called the “35th largest air force in the world”. With Mahaddie’s help, the producers located 109 Spitfires in the UK, of which 27 were available although only 12 could be made flyable. Mahaddie negotiated use of six Hawker Hurricanes, of which three were flying. The film helped preserve these aircraft, including a rare Spitfire Mk II which had been a gate guardian at RAF Colerne in Wiltshire.

During the actual aerial conflict, all RAF Spitfires were Spitfire Mk I and Mark II variants. However, only one Mk Ia and one Mk IIa (the latter with a Battle of Britain combat record) could be made airworthy, so the producers had to use seven other different marks, all of them built later in the war. To achieve commonality, the production made some modifications to “standardise” the Spitfires, including adding elliptical wingtips, period canopies and other changes. To classic aircraft fans, they became known as “Mark Haddies” (a play on Grp. Capt. Mahaddie’s name). A pair of two-seat trainer Spitfires were camera platforms to achieve realistic aerial footage inside the battle scenes. Lieutenant Maurice Hynett, RN, on leave from duties at Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough flew a number of spitfire sequences in the film, including one of the opening scenes which features a single Spitfire in flight. A rare Hawker Hurricane XII had been restored by Canadian Bob Diemert, who flew the aircraft in the film. Eight non-flying Spitfires and two Hurricanes were set dressing, with one Hurricane able to taxi.

A North American B-25 Mitchell N6578D, flown by pilots John “Jeff” Hawke and Duane Egli, was the primary filming platform for the aerial sequences. It was fitted with camera positions in what were formerly the aircraft’s nose, tail and waist gun positions. An additional camera, on an articulating arm, was mounted in the aircraft’s bomb bay and allowed 360-degree shots from below the aircraft. The top gun turret was replaced with a clear dome for the aerial director, who would co-ordinate the other aircraft by radio.

N6578D was painted garishly for line-up references and to make it easier for pilots to determine which way it was manoeuvring. When the brightly coloured aircraft arrived at Tablada airbase in Spain in early afternoon of 18 March 1968, the comment from Derek Cracknell, the assistant director, was “It’s a bloody great psychedelic monster!” The aircraft was henceforth dubbed the Psychedelic Monster. The Luftwaffe armada included over 50 real aircraft. (screenshot)

For the German aircraft, the producers obtained 32 CASA 2.111 twin-engined bombers, a Spanish-built version of the German Heinkel He 111H-16.

Heinkel He 111 – In The Movies

They also located 27 Hispano Aviación HA-1112 M1L ‘Buchon’ single-engined fighters, a Spanish version of the German Messerschmitt Bf 109. The Buchons were altered to look more like correct Bf 109Es, adding mock machine guns and cannon, and redundant tailplane struts, and removing the rounded wingtips. The Spanish aircraft were powered by British Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, and thus almost all the aircraft used, British and German alike, were Merlin-powered.

Messerschmitt Bf 109 Hispano Buchon G-BWUE German Fighter plane in Battle of Britain & Dunkirk film

After the film, one HA-1112 was donated to the German Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr, and converted to a Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 variant, depicting the insignias of German ace Gustav Rödel.

Two Heinkels and the 17 flyable Messerschmitts (including one dual-controlled HA-1112-M4L two-seater, used for conversion training and as a camera ship), were flown to England to complete the shoot. In the scene where the Polish training squadron breaks off to attack (the “Repeat, please” sequence), the three most distant Hurricanes were Buchons marked as Hurricanes, as there were not enough flyable Hurricanes. In addition to the combat aircraft, two Spanish-built Junkers Ju 52 transports were used.

By Screenshot – Fair use, Link

Use of RAF bases including Duxford lent an air of authenticity.

Filming in England was at Duxford, Debden, North Weald and Hawkinge, all operational stations in 1940 – one surviving First World War “Belfast” hangar at Duxford was blown up and demolished for the Eagle Day sequence. Some filming also took place at Bovingdon, a former wartime bomber airfield. The title sequence scene, showing a review of German bombers on the ground by Fieldmarshal Milch, was filmed at Tablada Airfield in Spain. Stunt coordinator Wilson Connie Edwards retained a Mark IX Spitfire, six Buchons, and a P-51 Mustang in lieu of payment, which were stored in Texas until sold to collectors in 2014.

Making the movie "The Battle of Britain"

Numerous scenes were shot in the preserved operations rooms, illustrating the operation of the Dowding system that controlled the fighter squadrons. Much of this footage takes place in 11 Group’s operations room, today preserved as the Battle of Britain Bunker. Other scenes take place in Fighter Command’s central “filter room” as well as recreations of the squadron ops rooms. One scene shows the hit on Biggin Hill‘s ops room, and another shows its relocation to a local bakery, although this is a recreation of another squadron’s backup room in a local butcher’s shop.

On Location – Cine film – Battle of Britain Production

Location filming in London was carried out mainly in the St Katharine Docks area where older houses were being demolished for housing estates. Partly demolished buildings represented bombed houses and disused buildings were set on fire. St Katharine Docks was one of the few areas of London’s East End to survive the Blitz. Many extras were survivors of the Blitz. Aldwych tube station, used as a wartime air-raid shelter, was also used as a filming location. Almost all the period equipment from the London Fire Brigade Museum was used in the film. The night scenes of wartime Berlin were filmed in Donostia-San Sebastian, Basque Country. The scenes at RAF Fighter Command were filmed at RAF Bentley Priory, the headquarters of Fighter Command. Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding’s original office, with the original furniture, was used.