Rob Compton

No problem James. The one I'm looking forward to is Films of Britain during World War II from Panamint Cinema "Women and Children at War" including "Miss Grant goes to the door". This has been on the site for a long time, and I understand is expected before Christmas.

rgds
Rob

Ady

"Let's go to Birmingham" is a fav'e BTF of mine
BFI | Creative Archive Licence Group

julian_craster

Top Documentary Shorts - a look at Britain on film
Listing at
Top Documentary Shorts - a look at Britain on film - MovieMail UK
Introduction - Little gems deserving a bigger audience. There is a wide variety of great documentary films now released on DVD. Many of them will help to complete the picture in your family history and in some of them, some lucky people will actually see their ancestor on film! These films are excellent examples of the art of documentary film making and give a fascinating view of our islands in peace and in war, at work and at play. There are some real gems too, so surprise yourself and dip into these wonderful films about aspects of our island life

Freddy

Through PaPaS I have read the letter and what strikes me is the similarity in emotion and feeling I have when reading it and remembering Peter Carter's 'final' words to June. I cannot compare like for like as I haven't a tape of AMOLAD but in those words you learnt so much about Carter, his mother perhaps a widow who has struggled to raise her child (did his father die in WW1 and if so did he ever live to see his son?) A university education and beyond cut short by the war. A sense of being proud to be English, of duty, and of faith. An appreciation of history, his part in it, and the life after.

Finding the book AMOLAD on the PaPaS web site and reading the relevant lines confirms these thoughts. It leaves me wondering if Michael Powell created Carter's character and words with that letter in mind, and in giving us Peter Carter he also gave us the spirit of Airman Vivian Rosewarne.

regards

Freddy

Steve Crook

A very interesting idea Freddy, and I must admit one that I'd never considered.
There were a lot of single parent families just after the slaughter of so many men in WWI. But Peter tells us he's 27 ("age 27 did you get that?" to June) so was born after WWI (just). Was there a baby boom after WWI? It wouldn't surprise me if there was. Although there was also the 1918 flu epidemic which also killed a lot of people.

Peter and Vvian were both bomber crew although Peter was more experienced and was a higher rank.

Neither of them wanted to die, but neither appeared to be particularly fearful of death. They both had faith in some sort of afterlife.

Both had a very romantic view of life.

Very interesting

Steve

Steve Crook

PaPAS

Freddy

Looking at the possible age of Peter Carter has revealed something I was not thinking about.
The book says Peter Carter was 'wrenched away' from university life at the age of 22. If, by that it means conscription which was started in Sept. ' 39 for men over 18 then that would put his birth year as 1917. However it is looking at his death which has fascinated me. He 'died' coming back from a bombing raid on the morning of May 5th 1945 and as Steve has pointed out he was then 27 so is my maths correct when I say that that would put his birthday in the months of June, July, August up to September (conscription month) 1917.

The important date to look at though is his date of death, he was coming back from a bombing raid over Europe in his Lancaster. According to the RAF web site

http://www.raf.mod.uk/bombercommand/apr45.htm

the last Lancaster bombing raids where in April.


I am not too concerned with what appears to be an error in the dates as for me the story isn't really about dates, it goes deeper. In the book (adapted by Eric Warman) it reads So I wonder did P and P have the idea for the film and begin writing nearing the end of rather than after the war hence the discrepency in the dates.

The link to AMOLAD book is on the PaPaS web site

A Matter of Life and Death Index

as is the Airman's Letter to his Mother

An Airman's Letter To His Mother


My thanks to the above, to www. headlinehistory.co.uk and also the excellent RAF history section on the web.

regards

Freddy

Steve Crook

AMOLAD was originally written a year or two earlier. But they couldn't make it then because all of the Technicolor cameras were in use making training films for the US Army. So they made IKWIG while they were waiting.

Peter could well have been a volunteer before conscription started. That could still be considered as having been wrenched away from University life. The need to go and do something he felt to be more important. He was very experienced as he told Doc Reeves at Lee Wood House. That's why the work he was doing now was as a pathfinder

Steve

Freddy

Thanks for that Steve, looking at the depth of the man you know that he would volunteer rather than wait and the thought has just entered my head that the University would have had an Air Squadron (first began in1925) which would have given him his flying experience.

regards

Freddy

Freddy

aphra

Every Day Except Christmas
A Diary for Timothy
Night Mail

batman

The Dumb Waiter ... very scary.

The Dumb Waiter (1979)

I wish I had claws.