New series looks at ‘The Battle of Britain’

In 1969, 007 veterans Guy Hamilton and Harry Saltzman collaborated on a movie they hoped would sum up the bravery of the allied forces.

With an all-star cast including Michael Caine, Trevor Howard and Laurence Olivier, Battle of Britain had no shortage of talent, or technical expertise.

Former participants of the conflict, including Douglas Bader, James Lacey and Robert Stanford Tuck offered their thoughts on the production.

In spite of some anti-war sentiment caused by the Vietnam conflict, it dominated the UK movie charts for 14 weeks. But what was the Battle of Britain really like, away from the bright lights of movie cameras?

Well, in this new series shown across the week, Kate Humble and Dan Snow offer us their take on the era. It’s a three-part guide to the critical aerial battle that changed the course of the Second World War. The show features personal stories of pilots, ground crews and members of the public.

This first episode tracks the inaugural skirmishes of the three-day battle, as the Luftwaffe began an all-out assault to rid Britain of air power prior to a land invasion. It opens with a look at 15th August, 1940 – a day that started quietly, as it was too cloudy for Hitler’s Luftwaffe to attack. However, it would not stay quiet for long.

As the Battle of Britain begins in earnest, the whole country finds itself under attack. Hitler has ordered that the RAF should be wiped out entirely, leaving the path clear for an imminent invasion of Britain. In a top-secret bunker under the West London suburb of Uxbridge, 19-year-old Joan Fanshawe is tracking the battle as it happens.

Her secret diary reveals life as a member of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force on the front line – every move she makes is critical.

Joan’s own life is worthy of a movie. She had abandoned plans to study for a social work degree, and enlisted out of a sense of duty. Since her father had no sons to volunteer, she said she would do it instead.

In retrospect it’s easy to see a visit from Winston Churchill as an historic event.

However, despite the British PM’s trip, Joan’s diary noted that she was “rather annoyed” that his visit had extended her shift by an hour.

Alan Allport, Associate Professor of History at Syracuse University and recent Radio 4 contributor, puts the conflict in context: “The Second World War could easily have ended in 1940 with complete victory for Adolf Hitler if the British had lost the Battle of Britain. Because they won it, that meant the war would go on. The British still had to figure out a way to actually defeat Hitler, not just avoid losing. But it bought time. And this was crucial, because it encouraged Hitler to make mistakes (like invading the USSR), and gave Britain time to forge alliances (such as with the USA) which made a victory possible in the end.”

The three-parter continues on Wednesday and concludes on Thursday.

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