This book brings back many memories for me. I was serving as an Air Traffic Controller at RAF Bassingbourn just 4 miles from RAF Duxford during the making of the film and assisted, with a colleague, during the arrival at Duxford, of the fleet of German marked aircraft for the film. Subsequent to that event we were constantly aware of the intense activity of the aircraft involved with our own very busy Canberra aircraft movements at Bassingbourn.
The book of the film making gives an excellent description of the difficulties of the film makers bringing together all the aircraft, aircrews, actors and locations necessary to bring the story of the Battle of Britain to the screen. As mentioned in the book, this was before the era of CGI and although there were not completely original aircraft or scenes available, the essence of the Battle was captured in the best way possible. The film remains an excellent tribute to all those involved in this historic struggle during WWll.

DNF @ 15%

"Battle of Britain" is the epitome of 'cool' filmmaking from a time before computer-generated effects rendered practical effects work largely redundant. The variety of aircraft, the star-studded cast, and the idea of fighting a defensive air battle all made Guy Hamilton's film very memorable.

Rudhall and Sarkar's book, however, turns the production of the film into a bureaucratic set of notes some sleepy civil servant in Whitehall may as well have typed up. The writing is dully dry, bereft of any life and lacking an interest in engaging with the reader, perhaps because the existing craze around Hamilton's film, and its significance in film history may normally excuse such bare-minimum writing. Not with this fellow, it won't!

Princess Fuzzypants here: If you are a fan of WWII aircraft with a specific interest in the Battle of Britain, both the event and the move, check out this book. The detail in which the various aircraft were found, brought up to snuff and used in the movie is extraordinary. Filming this movie more than 25 years after the event created some overwhelming logistical challenges including finding the craft they not only could film but could put in the air. There are some fascinating stories including the Spanish Air Force that had planes that could double as the German ones and pilots who could fly them.

They were also trying to film the move at the end of the swinging 60s where many viewpoints had changed and the desire for the story to be told was waning. But it was a story that deserved telling and in spite of the various conflicts that existed where one faction wanted things to be told from their perspective to the need to come up with fictional characters and squadrons in case someone was left out and feelings hurt, it is amazing that it got told. In fact, the second part of the book where the movie is reviewed scene by scene and judged for accuracy was the most interesting part for me.

It is full of fascinating stories both from the battle to the screen. Having watched the movie many times, I always find it uplifting and exciting. I cannot wait to see it again now that I know the inside scoop. Four purrs and two paws up.

For discerning fans of WW2 movies, this book is a must read! Such people appreciate when extreme efforts are made to make such films technically correct and historically accurate, such as were evident in the making of the 1969 classic film The Battle of Britain. A film whose flight sequences using mostly real aircraft, remain to this day unparalleled. The book describes the huge effort made to assemble a fleet of Spitfires, Hurricanes, Messerschmidts, Heinkel bombers, etc to enable scenes showing the scale of bombing raids with fighter support, and the ensuing chaos in the skies when RAF Fighter Command engage them. The book is packed full of details and not just the technical stuff around the aircraft. A lot of the broader film process is covered as well as the star studded cast and the story they are telling. One of the more interesting stories is the musical score and the fact the film has two distinguished conductors whose music is still greatly admired more than 50 years later.
The book finishes with a minute by minute account of the film sequence with detail of what is portrayed and comparisons to actual events. I have used this to follow the film and found it really enhanced the viewing experience.
I read the book electronically on my iPad rather than a kindle to make the most of the large number of photographs and illustrations.
I thoroughly recommend this book to war film buffs, people interested in war movie production or anyone interested in film making in general.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing prepublication access to this book.