Quite possibly the finest series of wartime flying, with just about the right mixture of pathos, courage and cynicism mixed in. A personal thanks to anyone left who made the series. - John Templeton Smith
Thanks for posting this. Lasthe time I saw it was 1988 when it first aired. Although it Is dated, it depicted a very real struggle that these pilots were up against, mentally, physically and personally. The production was actually very good, and the acting was pretty good in places. I believe this very small period in history is never really fully understood for its importance, and this series highlights that quite well. Churchills words really nailed it..
Brilliant screenplay. He caught the nuances of the officer-and-gentleman interactions and their courtesies perfectly, and the acting is really first-rate. Well done chaps.
When the series was first aired, some people protested that it denigrated the memory of the Few by showing them as fallible and not very pleasant human beings. I remember asking my Dad, who was an RAF night-fighter radar operator in the War, if he thought the portrayal of the pilots was accurate. He told me that of course people behaved the way they do in Piece of Cake: there were all kinds of characters, and there were some people he actively disliked in his squadron. There was plenty of snobbishness, what we'd now call racism, and class discrimination etc. Doesn't take from what these people did, in my view. And however revisionist the history may become, I think that the defeat of the Luftwaffe, and therefore the foiling of Hitler's plan to invade Britain, was indeed Their Finest Hour. Seeing a Spitfire in the air will always be an emotional and exhilarating experience for me (yes, I know Hurricanes were more numerous).
It showed up the British class system for what it was, and still is among certain generations, Brexit proved that. The only difference between the RAF pilots, and the Luftwaffe pilots was their respective countries. The Germans though have learned the lesson of WW2, the British still have not. I was born at the end of the war 1944, it's only when my generation has departed, and real social democracy comes to the UK, will the sort of shits shown in the programme be a memory.
Thank Mr martin Lewis for sharing this serie . I watched it many years ago when I was young and was the best. best regards from Portugal wish you the best Sir
The thing to remember in a war...our friends don't always come home. Here's to 2 friends of mine who went over...and aren't coming home. Give my thanks to Moggy, Flash and Hart for all they gave up for us. Thank you, too.
Really interesting series... It shows brutal a merciless air fights especially between fighters. Situation in the air can change within seconds, joy from air victory freezed suddenly to complete misery from a death... Moggy showed his own act of heroism at the end but only for a while, Bf109 gave him no chance like Moggy did not. I felt the atmosphere among the pilots on the airfield.
Uncle: "I hope to Christ this war is going to be worth it ..." A sentiment shared by the many, no doubt. One of the better wartime series of Fighter Command, the deprecating humour and cynicism always a heartbeat away.
Brilliant Series. Saw it years ago in Australia where they compressed it down to about three hours. Much better in the original format. Wish we could get it in DVD here. So very little comes out for Region 4 these days.
Just finished the 6 episodes and I'm glad I stuck with it while watching at 240p. Often I didn't know who had died but the wiki helped me keep up with it. Over all it was pretty good but at times seemed rushed or simplified. There wasn't much time for character development so it's mostly a few scenes on the ground followed by combat as they slowly killed most everyone off (often before you really knew who they were). I probably feel more like a replacement pilot than a viewer in that regard.
Howdy all. I read a book many years ago also called Piece of Cake. Skinny bloke in a blue pilot officers uniform on the cover with Lancasters in the background. Marvellous non-fiction read.
Absolutly brilliant on so many levels 11/10 For anyone interested in the class distinction which has plaged the British forces since the Boer war, on utube somewhere is a very interesting documentory concerning the airmans strike/mutiny just after the 2nd world war.Most squaddies were demobbed but 70% of airmen,aircrews,fitters were kept in service.The powers that be feared the new cold war and wanted all bases manned and ready.India,Cylon,Bahrain,Burma,Africa,Cyprus,Meditereanian.The aircrews were not pleased....In India it sparked off because the officers had servents and fine food the crews did unpaid work for BOAC and were fed on rancid camel meat.They refused to go on parade and the mutiny spread and spread.Officers threatened to shoot unarmed men which made things worse.This was all brushed under the carpet pretty quickly to save embaressment to the British goverment but I don't think it should be forgotten.
In Sept. 1940, the Kingston airport, No. 31 (RAF) SFTS opened with the instructors having been pilots who survived the B of B who were sent here as a rest cure. In the beginning they began teaching RAF and RCAF pilots and then by Dec., after the first course of Fleet Air Arm pupils arrived, they trained only naval pilots.
I say, that vicar who buried Flip Moran looked suspiciously like Gussie Fink-Nottle. I had no idea he ended up taking holy orders, last I heard he was getting all misty eyed and gooey over Madeline Bassett.
For a period I was obsessed by this novel in the 80s. You must read it. Then read 'Good Clean Fight' by Derek Robinson set in North Africa. It is just as good if not better.
Perhaps here is a place where I can apologize for something that happened in Edinburgh in 1976 while I was on a TDY to Edsel. It was a cold and windy day and I was wearing a cap cover. We were walking around the grounds and entered the castle and entered a huge room perhaps 200ft long 30 or more wide and 25 or more high and floor to ceiling wall to wall end to end were the places where heros of the Battle of Britain were entombed. I was awestruck!!!! I have always known how much we owe every one of those men who gave their life. My cap cover was the farthest thing from my mind As God is my witness I meant no disrespect. I WAS OVER COME at the sight of all those tombs. The guard yelled at me and I immediately yanked my cap off. So regretful and embarrassed that I couldn't even face the guard. This has plagued me for the 40+ years since. that I appeared to be "the ugly American" a 1958 novel by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer. I apologize sincerely.
I'm sure they noticed how quickly you complied and that you were embarrassed. No harm done. Hat on or off, you took the time to remember them and that has got to matter a lot more than protocol.
With greatest respect to the R A F and its pilots, ( youngest group captain Commander killed in action in WW II was the Irishman Paddy Finnicunne). But I smiled when I saw the title of film. "Piece of cake." First thought was "Just like Brexit"
That's not a Spitfire at around 5.30 (Fitz's plane going down into the drink), is it? Looks more like a Hurricane to me (straight wing leading and trailing edge, not elliptical). A clip from 'Battle of Britain', perhaps, and probably also the previous sequence of a Heinkel III crashing in flames into the sea?
Thanks for the upload. Just watched the whole series, having read the book (which is far better of course, but it's hard to do justice to a book that long and detailed in just a six-episode series). It gets the spirit of the book quite well, although I got the impression the pilots weren't quite such a bunch of stuffed shirts in the book. The main letdown for me was how they dodged the root cause of Flash losing it (that he'd accidentally strafed a refugee column and thought he'd shot his own wife). Also a bit of a shame that the aeroplane details were so wrong and anachronistic, but as has been mentioned they'd never have got enough period-correct flying Hurricanes (or any?)
Watched this first time round and also read the book on which it's based. I'm old enough to have known a few vets of fighter and bomber command and their descriptions (when you could get them to say anything at all) was much more like this than the "authorised" version.
He was right to send that woman away. That would wreak havoc on a pilots mind and the last thing they need to see before combat. As much as it's nice to be friends with everyone he knew that he had to be an asshole to that lady for the sake of all the pilots and personnel who needed to do their job and be focused.
If the pilots and their attitude were really as portrayed in this series, we would never have won The Battle of Britain. The series is a disgrace to their memory.
It was made 40 years ago when many of the pilots were still alive, as were many who worked with them, and that's how it was and how they were, however much you may like to think it wasn't the case. You don't need to be nice to win, or even to be a good team player if it's an air war, and many weren't.
To be fair they followed closely to the novel as much as they could hence it wasn’t on a historically accurate record. Even the late Roland Beamont disliked the TV series so much that he wrote some stinging articles about it at the time of its release on LWT.
Mrs Richards: "I paid for a room with a view !" Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam ." Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!" Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window ? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..." Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!" Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky." Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction." Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment ?"
Flash makes an emergency landing after been shot up and wounded. Finds an aerodrome close by, lands, taxis in with smoke billowing everywhere from his kite. Wingco rolls up and abuses him, "what the bloody hell you been playing at?, are you drunk?, whats wrong with you? "Hello Sir just got shot up and am about to pass out from my wounds, is there anything else I can help you with, like what the bloody hell does it look like!!!
Years after the war an interviewer asked Luftwaffe Ace Adolf Galland what could have changed the outcome of the Battle of Britain. He said simply "If they had given us Spitfires." I've read the 109 was fuel injected and superior at high altitudes but they were ordered to stay at lower altitudes for some incredibly dumb reason-via Goering.
The 109s only had less than 30 minutes fuel (assuming they came over from the closest channel airfield) so couldn't escort the Do-17s or other bombers very far. This gave them 10 minutes combat time if they were lucky, then they had to head south and hope not to be intercepted by our lads. The real screw up was neglecting their jet aircraft until late in the war (which amazingly wasn't Goring's fault but Miche's his Air Marshal who stymied it).
@@Retro-Future-Land I've also read just another week of 'the Blitz' and the reeling RAF would have run out of pilots. Interestingly I've read Manstein's memoirs and he claimed Hitler had a soft spot for the British, considering them equals.
@@tomservo5347 Not correct. Despite the Davod vs Goliath myth, the RAF not only had more fighters than the Luftwaffe but more pilots, increasingly so as the Battle went on - partly because they were training more, but also partly because while there was a 0% possibility of any Luftwaffe pilots baling out over southern Britain returning to fly, 70% of RAF pilots who did so were able to.
The thing to remember is that back in 1987/88 the only airworthy Hurricanes were those on the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, hence why they used Spitfires instead. Of course now we're blessed with a number of privately owned Hurricanes with another BoB veteran well on its way to completion! =)
@@Keyswiz71The MoD thought the film would have been bad for recruiting, which was a problem at the time as it has been for the past fifty years, so they they declined to help in production or to allow the BBMF to be used.
Just a great series. It looks like they used P-40s with a modified tail for the Me 109s. Dont imagine there were too many Me 109s around when they made the series. Its sort of M.A.S.H with Spitfires and Moggy is Hawk Eye Pierce...................
They used Hispano Ha 1112 Buchons, a Merlin-powered version of the Bf 109 that was used by the Spanish Air-Force up until the late 1960s. These same aircraft later also appeared in the motion-picture Memphis Belle in 1990. The He 111s shown in the movie "The Battle of Britain (1969) were also Spanish variants, the producers obtained 32 CASA 2.111 twin-engined bombers, a Spanish-built version of the German Heinkel He 111H-16. Wikipedia Just mentioning the He 111s 'played' by their Spanish variants because this TV-series uses a lot of dog fight and bomber footage from the 1969 movie. Which is understandable considering the much smaller budget the producers of "Piece of Cake" had available.
Excellent series! Realistic characters, no idealization. Makes one completely ignore the technical flaws (later Mks of Spits in 1939-40, Spits stationed in France) ...
+Ebor York No, they weren't in 1940. Dowding wanted to save them for the defense of Britain. They did fly top cover over Dunkerque, however, but that was after France had already virtually fallen, and they did it from bases in Britain.
yeah I noticed that as well. The wrong mks of spits for the time. Also Churchill was asked to send spits to France but he refused. But an excellent series. Wish they carried on to the conclusion of B of B.
Now comes the worse moments of an island country besieged by an enemy by air and sea.Day or night the german luftwaffe come to bomb their capital their industrial cities,attack their army and navy bases.Innocent cvilians become casualties of the onslaught.Rationing becomes more common.Though it was this way England now relied upon their brave airmen few and tired they still went up fighting for their survival as a nation.Many died either from a fiery crash or be maimed when the pilot tried to come home and land his all shot up Spitfire back to his squadron's homebase.The worse of it was that to be shot down in enemy held France.Families would be devastated of such news much more for a wife and child the downed pilot left in England waiting hoping there would be news of his existence in a POW camp.Some came home others were not.War was not anymore in a chosen field it was now everywhere.
Yes, that's all very well for Fighter Command but they did have "a home ground advantage." Now ... the arse who decided to make only six episodes needs flogging. Thanks.
it's ashamed that we Americans didn't come over early and help y'all out but just like to day all of the people running around wanting people to be able to come in and not check them out we are looking for another war and most can't see dam shame
me hee The Eagle Squadrons (there were 3 of them) were squadrons made up of American volunteers in the RAF that saw action in 1940-42 before they were absorbed into the U.S Army Air Forces as the 4th Fighter Group. Look them up, there are plenty of sources with info about them.
Where AAA guns on the air base ? No 95mm AAA guns, 40mm Bofor guns, 20mm cannons, .303 Lewis and Bren Light Machine Guns ? It the sign with Dog fight over the R.A.F base was real the ground fight would have saved the R.A.F pilot life.
@@raymondyee2008it must be expensive to fire a blank 40mm Bofors AAA gun shells, even the Battle of Britain never used the AAA guns in any seen, Anti Aircraft Command shoot down 300 German and Italian aircraft that 15.17%. Its funny reading British tank doctrine regarding Tank crews when attack by German and Italian aircraft stay inside the tank don't engage the aircraft with return tank's MG fire, while American Tank doctrine is the opposite they return fire with there 50 cal M.G with surprising success examples are seen in North African, Italy and Western Front during the battle of Anzio fighting M10 tank destroy shoot down FW 190 fighters bombers with there Browning 50 cal and in Western Fronts M4 Sherman Tanks shoot down light German reconnaissance planes with there 0.50 cal Machine Gun fire the German and Italian was scared flying over the American lines even soldiers was putting out fire to bring them down.
The gun camera films cannot be stopped, when they are being shown. If this happened the heat of the projector lamp would cause the film to catch fire. This was a known fact! It frequently happend in cinemas when the film broke and appeared on the screen, not a a picture but as melting film.
I have hearing loss, plus I am using my ears. It's a tough accent. Try coming to the south and understand the people in the countryside. I understand them, and you might not.
That took nerve? You sound brave online. I wonder how well you understand the speech of people in the mid-south and southeast compared to me (I am northern born),
49:56 Not quite a satisfactory ending and it felt very rushed. Didn’t end with like “...as for Hornet Squadron we will go on to fight elsewhere even in North Africa but that’s another story to tell”.
Watchable, it's a shame Hornet Squadron weren't flying Hurricanes instead of late mark Spitfires, in France all RAF fighters were Hurricanes, anyway, all in all not bad, Neil Dudgeon was good as Moggy and the portrayal of the Phoney War was pretty accurate, having said that, I don't think I would watch it a second time round, in all fairness a good time filler and I think the show was supposed to show what it was like for RAF pilots in 1940 which it did. The 109s were good though.
When they ask ''if it's worth it.'' It's helpful to remember the 7 decades since then which include Elvis, the Beatles, television, computers (Alan Turing), space flight, surfing and bikinis, and generally speaking life lived NOT under the jackboot of Hitler's 3rd Reich. Of course if Trump gets his way we'll all have to salute him in some stupid parade and wear our hair in a mop of frazzled fake straw and pretend his crowds were bigger, and his hands are bigger and all that BS. Fascism had been sleeping but it woke up in 2016. Do try to remember the sacrifices of our grandfathers against this dreadful menace.
I know this comment is from a month ago but I feel I must correct you. The credits roll Pilots, Officers, then Civilians which contain the credits for Mary and Mrs. Burnett.
![KSI - Dirty [Official Visualiser]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/VoDh1h1dPUE/mqdefault.jpg)
Realistic and Brilliant. The flying was superb. The acting was excellent. The realism hit home as to what my Dad told me.
Quite possibly the finest series of wartime flying, with just about the right mixture of pathos, courage and cynicism mixed in. A personal thanks to anyone left who made the series.
- John Templeton Smith
Remember watching this with family members that arent here anymore, thank you for posting this!
Over 30 years later is this amazing series continues to grow a cult following. It’s well deserved
Author Derek Robinson has a site online.
@@stevejauncey3086 Thank you 🙏 Steve
30 years? Only seems like yesterday 😂
Thanks for posting this. Lasthe time I saw it was 1988 when it first aired. Although it Is dated, it depicted a very real struggle that these pilots were up against, mentally, physically and personally. The production was actually very good, and the acting was pretty good in places.
I believe this very small period in history is never really fully understood for its importance, and this series highlights that quite well.
Churchills words really nailed it..
Had not heard of this excellent film before, many thanks for sharing.
Brilliant screenplay. He caught the nuances of the officer-and-gentleman interactions and their courtesies perfectly, and the acting is really first-rate. Well done chaps.
When the series was first aired, some people protested that it denigrated the memory of the Few by showing them as fallible and not very pleasant human beings. I remember asking my Dad, who was an RAF night-fighter radar operator in the War, if he thought the portrayal of the pilots was accurate. He told me that of course people behaved the way they do in Piece of Cake: there were all kinds of characters, and there were some people he actively disliked in his squadron. There was plenty of snobbishness, what we'd now call racism, and class discrimination etc. Doesn't take from what these people did, in my view. And however revisionist the history may become, I think that the defeat of the Luftwaffe, and therefore the foiling of Hitler's plan to invade Britain, was indeed Their Finest Hour. Seeing a Spitfire in the air will always be an emotional and exhilarating experience for me (yes, I know Hurricanes were more numerous).
Yes it made the pilots more human and I had even more respect for what they did.
Have you watched the series Wings.?
It showed up the British class system for what it was, and still is among certain generations, Brexit proved that. The only difference between the RAF pilots, and the Luftwaffe pilots was their respective countries. The Germans though have learned the lesson of WW2, the British still have not. I was born at the end of the war 1944, it's only when my generation has departed, and real social democracy comes to the UK, will the sort of shits shown in the programme be a memory.
Yeah, I remember that reaction. Funnily enough, none of the protesters were BOB veterans.
Thank Mr martin Lewis for sharing this serie . I watched it many years ago when I was young and was the best.
best regards from Portugal wish you the best Sir
The thing to remember in a war...our friends don't always come home. Here's to 2 friends of mine who went over...and aren't coming home. Give my thanks to Moggy, Flash and Hart for all they gave up for us. Thank you, too.
What would I do without youtube away from blighty for so long. Many thanks Sir for a cracking show.
Really interesting series... It shows brutal a merciless air fights especially between fighters. Situation in the air can change within seconds, joy from air victory freezed suddenly to complete misery from a death... Moggy showed his own act of heroism at the end but only for a while, Bf109 gave him no chance like Moggy did not. I felt the atmosphere among the pilots on the airfield.
Excellent series have always loved it I was fortunate enough to buy it on dvd years ago
My dad was in the U.S. Army Air Force in WWII. He developed film from gun cameras. It helped refine tactics and make our fighters more effective.
British telly at it's finest . No CG. Beautiful Spitfires and a very creditable cast. Fine tribute to the Few !.
Great series! Flying scenes are outstanding. Saw this mini-series on Public TVs in the 1990's!
Really enjoyed this piece of drama. Thanks for posting. Greetings from an Irishman in Germany.
Thanks so much for posting this wonderful series. One of the best productions ever.
Golly good show chap! Thx for loading. Pity there are no more shows as such
Thanks for posting this excellent series.
Many thanks for the series.It was great to see it again.
Excellent book and excellent series. Brave people. From the old Aussie.
Check out 'The Fourth Arm'
Would love to see a 'digitalised' version of this!. Bril!. Nuff said!.
Great programme, bought it for my Dad on dvd for £2! Love Moggy and thr music is fantastic.
Uncle: "I hope to Christ this war is going to be worth it ..."
A sentiment shared by the many, no doubt.
One of the better wartime series of Fighter Command, the deprecating humour and cynicism always a heartbeat away.
"I hope to Christ this war is going to be worth it ...". Years ago I would have said, most definitely but, now, I'm not sure.
Brilliant Series. Saw it years ago in Australia where they compressed it down to about three hours. Much better in the original format. Wish we could get it in DVD here. So very little comes out for Region 4 these days.
Worked at Marshals in Cambridge where this was made
Just finished the 6 episodes and I'm glad I stuck with it while watching at 240p. Often I didn't know who had died but the wiki helped me keep up with it. Over all it was pretty good but at times seemed rushed or simplified. There wasn't much time for character development so it's mostly a few scenes on the ground followed by combat as they slowly killed most everyone off (often before you really knew who they were). I probably feel more like a replacement pilot than a viewer in that regard.
It appears that of the original group pf pilots introduced in episode one, only Fanny and Pip made it through September 7, 1940.
Cox made it(short a left hand), but I see your point.
Brilliant programme, so close to really what it was all about.
Nimrod there constantly pissed or hung over
Paul Hunter, probably.
Thanks awfully chap for uploading this series.
Howdy all. I read a book many years ago also called Piece of Cake. Skinny bloke in a blue pilot officers uniform on the cover with Lancasters in the background. Marvellous non-fiction read.
Actually it was fiction, although based on fact. Same story, same author.
Great series, shame they don't re run some of these
The battle of Britain was won not by RAF pilots, but by the distilleries of England. Thank goodness for booze!
Actually the producers of Benzedrine
47:55 Notice the lark singing. Beautiful.
No Spitfires were armed with Cannons at the time of the Battle of Britain, but all the spitfores in the film were cannon armed.
250 minutes of viewing time and you finally get to see Fitz in a cockpit.
5:42 his death in the novel isn’t the same here; if I’m not mistaken in the novel he disappeared into a fog and was missing (presumed dead).
He almost never was in a Spitfire on the serie.
Absolutly brilliant on so many levels 11/10 For anyone interested in the class distinction which has plaged the British forces since the Boer war, on utube somewhere is a very interesting documentory concerning the airmans strike/mutiny just after the 2nd world war.Most squaddies were demobbed but 70% of airmen,aircrews,fitters were kept in service.The powers that be feared the new cold war and wanted all bases manned and ready.India,Cylon,Bahrain,Burma,Africa,Cyprus,Meditereanian.The aircrews were not pleased....In India it sparked off because the officers had servents and fine food the crews did unpaid work for BOAC and were fed on rancid camel meat.They refused to go on parade and the mutiny spread and spread.Officers threatened to shoot unarmed men which made things worse.This was all brushed under the carpet pretty quickly to save embaressment to the British goverment but I don't think it should be forgotten.
thankyouthankyouthankyou!!! great series.
My dad is the actor George anton
Thats awesome, Did he ever give you any props from this series?
Who was his character in this show
That is so amazing..
I read the book first,and never new there was a show about it..truly amazing..
Thank you .
@@Floatworld what like a spitfire lol sorry but you asked for that one mate..
@@carlwilliams9306 dont think he would of got a spitfire, wasn't that good of an actor!!! Maybe a parachute?? He Bailed out enough lol .
He did a fine job
Thank him from me .
i was psyched when i realized a few years ago that Boyd Gaines/Chris Hart was also the bookish Marine Lt. Ring in Heartbreak Ridge.
Damn, I've seen the movie more than a few times and the series several times and never made that connection. Good catch!
Riiiiiight....!
'I hope to Christ this war is going to be worth it.' Brilliant line from Uncle.
In Sept. 1940, the Kingston airport, No. 31 (RAF) SFTS opened with the instructors having been pilots who survived the B of B who were sent here as a rest cure. In the beginning they began teaching RAF and RCAF pilots and then by Dec., after the first course of Fleet Air Arm pupils arrived, they trained only naval pilots.
I say, that vicar who buried Flip Moran looked suspiciously like Gussie Fink-Nottle. I had no idea he ended up taking holy orders, last I heard he was getting all misty eyed and gooey over Madeline Bassett.
Didn't know reserve chutes were Double L modified with steering toggle. Very good series showing differing personalities working together.
this does show us what efforts were made by these guys.
Thank you, I wish there were for episodes and series.
I will have to see if I can find "Foyle's War" again.
Foyle''s war was the BEST series british tv ever put out.
For a period I was obsessed by this novel in the 80s. You must read it. Then read 'Good Clean Fight' by Derek Robinson set in North Africa. It is just as good if not better.
Best book I've ever read.
Perhaps here is a place where I can apologize for something that happened in Edinburgh in 1976 while I was on a TDY to Edsel. It was a cold and windy day and I was wearing a cap cover. We were walking around the grounds and entered the castle and entered a huge room perhaps 200ft long 30 or more wide and 25 or more high and floor to ceiling wall to wall end to end were the places where heros of the Battle of Britain were entombed. I was awestruck!!!! I have always known how much we owe every one of those men who gave their life. My cap cover was the farthest thing from my mind As God is my witness I meant no disrespect. I WAS OVER COME at the sight of all those tombs. The guard yelled at me and I immediately yanked my cap off. So regretful and embarrassed that I couldn't even face the guard. This has plagued me for the 40+ years since. that I appeared to be "the ugly American" a 1958 novel by Eugene Burdick and William Lederer.
I apologize sincerely.
I'm sure they noticed how quickly you complied and that you were embarrassed. No harm done. Hat on or off, you took the time to remember them and that has got to matter a lot more than protocol.
@@laurelrunlaurelrun Thank you, and if you ever visit that room would you convey my sincere apology to what ever guard should be on duty.
@@frederickwise5238 Will do.
@@laurelrunlaurelrun Thank you.
Don't apologize.......way too much American blood spilled over there. Hats off to the pilots but far from the only losses.
Moggy- hate him and love him at the same time! 😢 The attrition rate (deaths ) of fighter command was atrocious! 😮
Ironically at 24:16 “Flash” died in the same way as his wife Nicole did in episode 4; gunned down by a BF-109.
With greatest respect to the R A F and its pilots, ( youngest group captain Commander killed in action in WW II was the Irishman Paddy Finnicunne).
But I smiled when I saw the title of film. "Piece of cake."
First thought was "Just like Brexit"
That's not a Spitfire at around 5.30 (Fitz's plane going down into the drink), is it? Looks more like a Hurricane to me (straight wing leading and trailing edge, not elliptical). A clip from 'Battle of Britain', perhaps, and probably also the previous sequence of a Heinkel III crashing in flames into the sea?
Thanks for the upload. Just watched the whole series, having read the book (which is far better of course, but it's hard to do justice to a book that long and detailed in just a six-episode series). It gets the spirit of the book quite well, although I got the impression the pilots weren't quite such a bunch of stuffed shirts in the book. The main letdown for me was how they dodged the root cause of Flash losing it (that he'd accidentally strafed a refugee column and thought he'd shot his own wife). Also a bit of a shame that the aeroplane details were so wrong and anachronistic, but as has been mentioned they'd never have got enough period-correct flying Hurricanes (or any?)
Same author, Derek Robinson.
Watched this first time round and also read the book on which it's based. I'm old enough to have known a few vets of fighter and bomber command and their descriptions (when you could get them to say anything at all) was much more like this than the "authorised" version.
Winnie: Never on the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.
RAF pilots: He must have been talking about our bar bills!
He was right to send that woman away. That would wreak havoc on a pilots mind and the last thing they need to see before combat. As much as it's nice to be friends with everyone he knew that he had to be an asshole to that lady for the sake of all the pilots and personnel who needed to do their job and be focused.
Mange tout wasn't she pregnant with his child.
24:20
Wingman: "Red Leader what's your position?
Red Leader: 'This is Red leader. My position is bloody uncomfortable!'
If you think the ME 109s look a little strange at the front, it is probably because they are re-engined
Spanish aircraft.
If the pilots and their attitude were really as portrayed in this series, we would never have won The Battle of Britain. The series is a disgrace to their memory.
It was made 40 years ago when many of the pilots were still alive, as were many who worked with them, and that's how it was and how they were, however much you may like to think it wasn't the case. You don't need to be nice to win, or even to be a good team player if it's an air war, and many weren't.
To be fair they followed closely to the novel as much as they could hence it wasn’t on a historically accurate record.
Even the late Roland Beamont disliked the TV series so much that he wrote some stinging articles about it at the time of its release on LWT.
@@raymondyee2008The screenwriter was Derek Robinson - he wrote the book!
Mrs Richards: "I paid for a room with a view !"
Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam ."
Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!"
Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window ? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..."
Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!"
Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky."
Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction."
Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment ?"
Flash makes an emergency landing after been shot up and wounded. Finds an aerodrome close by, lands, taxis in with smoke billowing everywhere from his kite. Wingco rolls up and abuses him, "what the bloody hell you been playing at?, are you drunk?, whats wrong with you? "Hello Sir just got shot up and am about to pass out from my wounds, is there anything else I can help you with, like what the bloody hell does it look like!!!
That kind of stuff happened, unfortunately.
32:35 What? Hart seems quite friendly to the guy that grounded him a few days earlier.
Years after the war an interviewer asked Luftwaffe Ace Adolf Galland what could have changed the outcome of the Battle of Britain. He said simply "If they had given us Spitfires."
I've read the 109 was fuel injected and superior at high altitudes but they were ordered to stay at lower altitudes for some incredibly dumb reason-via Goering.
The 109s only had less than 30 minutes fuel (assuming they came over from the closest channel airfield) so couldn't escort the Do-17s or other bombers very far. This gave them 10 minutes combat time if they were lucky, then they had to head south and hope not to be intercepted by our lads.
The real screw up was neglecting their jet aircraft until late in the war (which amazingly wasn't Goring's fault but Miche's his Air Marshal who stymied it).
@@Retro-Future-Land I've also read just another week of 'the Blitz' and the reeling RAF would have run out of pilots.
Interestingly I've read Manstein's memoirs and he claimed Hitler had a soft spot for the British, considering them equals.
@@tomservo5347 Not correct. Despite the Davod vs Goliath myth, the RAF not only had more fighters than the Luftwaffe but more pilots, increasingly so as the Battle went on - partly because they were training more, but also partly because while there was a 0% possibility of any Luftwaffe pilots baling out over southern Britain returning to fly, 70% of RAF pilots who did so were able to.
....."well...I'll be buggered!".....Boom!......."our best day ever"
Brilliant series. Why wasn't it shown in the US?
It was, on PBS in 1988. I watched it then.
I recorded it on video tape from PBS.
KOMET MARTIN Me too, as a pilot I thought it was pretty good.
It was on tv, back in the '80s.
to bad it couldnt have followed the book closer ,, hornet squadron flew hurricanes not spits and a lot was left out but still a great series
The thing to remember is that back in 1987/88 the only airworthy Hurricanes were those on the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, hence why they used Spitfires instead. Of course now we're blessed with a number of privately owned Hurricanes with another BoB veteran well on its way to completion! =)
@@Keyswiz71The MoD thought the film would have been bad for recruiting, which was a problem at the time as it has been for the past fifty years, so they they declined to help in production or to allow the BBMF to be used.
Just a great series. It looks like they used P-40s with a modified tail for the Me 109s. Dont imagine there were too many Me 109s around when they made the series. Its sort of M.A.S.H with Spitfires and Moggy is Hawk Eye Pierce...................
They used Hispano Ha 1112 Buchons, a Merlin-powered version of the Bf 109 that was used by the Spanish Air-Force up until the late 1960s. These same aircraft later also appeared in the motion-picture Memphis Belle in 1990.
The He 111s shown in the movie "The Battle of Britain (1969) were also Spanish variants, the producers obtained 32 CASA 2.111 twin-engined bombers, a Spanish-built version of the German Heinkel He 111H-16.
Wikipedia
Just mentioning the He 111s 'played' by their Spanish variants because this TV-series uses a lot of dog fight and bomber footage from the 1969 movie. Which is understandable considering the much smaller budget the producers of "Piece of Cake" had available.
Excellent series! Realistic characters, no idealization. Makes one completely ignore the technical flaws (later Mks of Spits in 1939-40, Spits stationed in France) ...
+JoRo Were Spits not stationed in France?
+Ebor York No, they weren't in 1940. Dowding wanted to save them for the defense of Britain. They did fly top cover over Dunkerque, however, but that was after France had already virtually fallen, and they did it from bases in Britain.
yeah I noticed that as well. The wrong mks of spits for the time. Also Churchill was asked to send spits to France but he refused. But an excellent series. Wish they carried on to the conclusion of B of B.
Davie McEvoy
I thought Churchill was all for it, and it was Dowding that wanted to keep something in reserve.
No they were not. Only Hurricanes.
Now comes the worse moments of an island country besieged by an enemy by air and sea.Day or night the german luftwaffe come to bomb their capital their industrial cities,attack their army and navy bases.Innocent cvilians become casualties of the onslaught.Rationing becomes more common.Though it was this way England now relied upon their brave airmen few and tired they still went up fighting for their survival as a nation.Many died either from a fiery crash or be maimed when the pilot tried to come home and land his all shot up Spitfire back to his squadron's homebase.The worse of it was that to be shot down in enemy held France.Families would be devastated of such news much more for a wife and child the downed pilot left in England waiting hoping there would be news of his existence in a POW camp.Some came home others were not.War was not anymore in a chosen field it was now everywhere.
Loving the chase scenes @ Birling gap
Yes, that's all very well for Fighter Command but they did have "a home ground advantage." Now ... the arse who decided to make only six episodes needs flogging. Thanks.
Most of the tall poppies fell by episode 6.
As my Dad would say,"God Bless you Britian,"
How unlucky do you want it, they couldn’t get through the night without losing a spitfire
48:31 While I am glad "Pip" and "Fanny" survived you can tell they couldn't care less about the significance of 7/9/40.
I wonder if that was Moggy's kid in ep 6?
Probably has a moustache.
it's ashamed that we Americans didn't come over early and help y'all out but just like to day all of the people running around wanting people to be able to come in and not check them out we are looking for another war and most can't see dam shame
Seven Americans fought in the B of B
They formed the Eagle Squadrons afterward and kept flying even after Dec. 7 before joining the Army Air Forces
me hee No, that was the Lafayette Flying Corps
Many Americans came over after crossing into Canada and claiming they were Canadians to join the RAF
me hee The Eagle Squadrons (there were 3 of them) were squadrons made up of American volunteers in the RAF that saw action in 1940-42 before they were absorbed into the U.S Army Air Forces as the 4th Fighter Group. Look them up, there are plenty of sources with info about them.
Aces high eh.
which episode was it they teach the polish on bikes
Wasn't that the 2001 film Dark Blue World?
"I'll be buggered".......
shows good. however watch the battle of Britain movie and count how many dogfight scenes are copied from that movie
Why do all aircraft in a dive ( either Allied or German ) seem to be fitted with Stuka sirens?...... Hollywood has a lot to answer for !
Dark Blue World
Where AAA guns on the air base ?
No 95mm AAA guns, 40mm Bofor guns, 20mm cannons, .303 Lewis and Bren Light Machine Guns ?
It the sign with Dog fight over the R.A.F base was real the ground fight would have saved the R.A.F pilot life.
01:47 there was a 40-mm Bofors but strangely was never used here.
@@raymondyee2008it must be expensive to fire a blank 40mm Bofors AAA gun shells, even the Battle of Britain never used the AAA guns in any seen, Anti Aircraft Command shoot down 300 German and Italian aircraft that 15.17%. Its funny reading British tank doctrine regarding Tank crews when attack by German and Italian aircraft stay inside the tank don't engage the aircraft with return tank's MG fire, while American Tank doctrine is the opposite they return fire with there 50 cal M.G with surprising success examples are seen in North African, Italy and Western Front during the battle of Anzio fighting M10 tank destroy shoot down FW 190 fighters bombers with there Browning 50 cal and in Western Fronts M4 Sherman Tanks shoot down light German reconnaissance planes with there 0.50 cal Machine Gun fire the German and Italian was scared flying over the American lines even soldiers was putting out fire to bring them down.
The gun camera films cannot be stopped, when they are being shown. If this happened the heat of the projector lamp would cause the film to catch fire. This was a known fact! It frequently happend in cinemas when the film broke and appeared on the screen, not a a picture but as melting film.
In war one should not get married just play around a bit and hope on the end you get somebody!
Their accents are so bad even the closed captions can't get it right.
+ltcajh I'm English, their accents are just fine !
+ltcajh What makes their accents bad? They're all british except for the American and Australian guy. Use your ears.
I have hearing loss, plus I am using my ears. It's a tough accent. Try coming to the south and understand the people in the countryside. I understand them, and you might not.
ltcajh So you have hearing loss but you have the nerve to try and tell us that their accents are bad? That's a bit risky...
That took nerve? You sound brave online. I wonder how well you understand the speech of people in the mid-south and southeast compared to me (I am northern born),
everyone needs a Moggy on their side ! 🤪
Who does the translation? Learn English.
49:56 Not quite a satisfactory ending and it felt very rushed. Didn’t end with like “...as for Hornet Squadron we will go on to fight elsewhere even in North Africa but that’s another story to tell”.
46:20
German running England? *Cough* George I *Cough*
George I was Hanoverian - no "Germany" until 1870/1. Consequently, no "Germans".
Watchable, it's a shame Hornet Squadron weren't flying Hurricanes instead of late mark Spitfires, in France all RAF fighters were Hurricanes, anyway, all in all not bad, Neil Dudgeon was good as Moggy and the portrayal of the Phoney War was pretty accurate, having said that, I don't think I would watch it a second time round, in all fairness a good time filler and I think the show was supposed to show what it was like for RAF pilots in 1940 which it did. The 109s were good though.
When they ask ''if it's worth it.'' It's helpful to remember the 7 decades since then which include Elvis, the Beatles, television, computers (Alan Turing), space flight, surfing and bikinis, and generally speaking life lived NOT under the jackboot of Hitler's 3rd Reich.
Of course if Trump gets his way we'll all have to salute him in some stupid parade and wear our hair in a mop of frazzled fake straw and pretend his crowds were bigger, and his hands are bigger and all that BS.
Fascism had been sleeping but it woke up in 2016. Do try to remember the sacrifices of our grandfathers against this dreadful menace.
U really have TDS
Real Fascists despise Trump and America.
to lcajh MOORON
no credits GIVEN FOR ANY FEMALE ACTRESSES !!!!!! Superb show of equality between the sexes by the BBC !!!!
I know this comment is from a month ago but I feel I must correct you. The credits roll Pilots, Officers, then Civilians which contain the credits for Mary and Mrs. Burnett.
Made by ITV,!!!!
An independent production, not BBC😊
Specsavers is calling.