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Ep 80 – Battle of Britain – Finally Some RAF… Guy Hamilton’s Air Epic

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Description

In this episode of Rosie the Reviewer, we take to the skies for Battle of Britain (1969), Guy Hamilton’s sweeping recreation of the 1940 air campaign. We talk about the film’s impressive aerial combat scenes, its documentary-style storytelling, and the astonishing number of real WWII aircraft used on set.

From Christopher Plummer’s dashing Canadian pilot to Michael Caine’s brief but memorable role, we explore how the film mirrors Tora! Tora! Tora! in scope while giving overdue credit to the women of the WAAF. Expect plenty of radar talk, command tensions, and reflections on why this film might teach you more than it thrills.

Battle of Britain trailer

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Book Rec by Sam

These book recs contain affiliate links. You can buy (at no extra cost to yourself) these books and a small percentage of the sale may go to us. This way, you support our production. Thank you.
the narrow margin

The Narrow Margin by Derek Wood and Derek Dempster

“If you’re really interested in makes and models of airplanes and types of engines and how many of each make and model were manufactured in which year, then you’ll enjoy the book.”

“The back half of the book is essentially a day by day account of the Battle of Britain. What got bombed, how many planes were lost on each side, how many sorties were flown. So it’s very thoroughly researched, very exhaustive.”

“I did learn a lot. It sorta grew on me toward the end.”

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Support the podcast

Rosie the Reviewer is a passion project, built episode by episode. If you’d like to support what we do, you can help keep us on the air or pick up some Rosie merch. We’re working on more ways for you to get involved in the future.

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