BOB film – was any of it filmed at Bovingdon?

And indeed Tim Mills name under the list of Spit pilots, who has IIRC, posted here on this forum in the past.

Great document Mark 12,

Good to see the great John crewdson on the call sheet as helicopter pilot.

http://www.aerovintage.com/warlover.htm

Septic.

A fairly comprehensive double web page with some details and pix:
http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/place/gdg18/battleofbritain.shtml

Whilst looking through my files for another BoB film related issue, I came across this document – The Movement Order for the Aerial Unit from Duxford to Bovingdon on 25 September 1968.

So clearly filming was conducted using Bovingdon as a flying base, however it was not in my view a site for location shooting.

Mark

Thankyou all for your responses.

Mike

you might be surprised as DX was not as is now and you have forgotten Hornchurch and Debden………………..

Chris G

Well we have Debden in post 2.

Can you substantiate filming at Hornchurch?

Wasn’t it the East London Quarry of Hoveringham Gravels by this time?

Mark

Mark,I thought that was at Little Rissington ?

This confirms that some filming was definately done at Bovvy.

http://www.bovingdonairfield.co.uk/history.htm

Edit: Mark’s proof is far better……. 🙂

Mark,I thought that was at Little Rissington ?

I think they did operate out of Little Rissington on an occasion but the main base was Bovingdon.

Mark

Yours truly in the right hand seat taxiing out with John Hawke at Bovingdon.

..and ‘Hanover Street’…c1979.

Mark

Mark,I thought that was at Little Rissington ?

I had an inkling that maybe the model scenes (Stuka) were filmed there?

Mike

Testing and filming the models commenced in January 1968 at Duxford, along with dire warnings from Guy Hamilton of the dangers.

The Model Unit was based at Pinewood Studios.

In October 1968 the Model Unit was dispatched to Malta, presumably looking for better weather.

Mark

I had an inkling that maybe the model scenes (Stuka) were filmed there?

Mike

Many of the model scenes were shot near Lasham and Duxford, although some of it was shot in Malta to take advantage of better weather.

I had an inkling that maybe the model scenes (Stuka) were filmed there?

Mike

The MoD License to use the Duxford facility for the BoB film, Annexe B, was from 1st February 1968, for 7 months, until 31 August 1968.

The summer of 1968 was similar to 2008, rain, rain and more rain. In the end the aerial film unit deployed to France, via Cambridge, in search of better conditions for aerial filming.

The MoD License to use Bovingdon is referred as ‘September 1968’ in a letter dated 19 December 1968 to extend said license.

In theory, :), by September 1968 all principal filming had been completed. So whilst Bovingdon was not used for ground to ground/air shots it is possible that aerial shots may have been taken as the directors cut the film and required further specific shots.

Mark

re

Many of the Take off shots filmed at Sywell;)

thats what I was thinking, many of the take off shots are clearly not Duxford or North Weald.

Memory is a bit vague, but I guess this would have been around June/July 68. I definitely remember seeing aircraft formations and I have an old photo somewhere of the CASA’s flying over Chesham (few miles from Bovingdon) – again this was not a one-off.

Mike

Car used in BoB film?

As there seems to be some very knowledgable film buffs on here, I hope the following question is relevant & not too impertinent?

For many years I have owned a semi-derelict (well some say completely derelict!) MG YA saloon – one of those projects I am still hoping to get around to one day! When I bought it, I was told it had formerly belonged to an RAF officer, though this had nothing to do with my decision to purchase – I specifically wanted a Y-Type & was on limited funds (as always!) & this was the only one within my budget – I did note that it was brush painted RAF blue, so thought there could be some truth in this?

However, a couple of years ago, I was talking to a well known car restorer, who I happened to be helping source some unusual aircraft switches for a vintage racing car he was working on and the conversation turned to my MG. He thought he recalled the car as it has an unusual number plate (RNU 40) as well as the odd colour! – He had provided vehicles for a number of films made in the 1960s and 1970s and recalled painting an MG Y Type saloon RAF blue for one of these war films – as this model looks like a pre war car (designed in 1938), even though it was built in 1951. He was convinced it was done for the Battle of Britain film (though I do not recall seeing one in it), but said it could have been another film?

Now I have had the car for 20 years and have no intention of selling, so this is not a cheap shot at giving it some provenance to put on the dreaded eBay! But if it was indeed a former “Film Star” or does have some RAF connections through a previous owner, I would love to know – It may just give me the incentive to re-start the project & get it back on the road where it belongs.

I have an old Ian Allan book – Aeroplanes in Colour – published in 1976 which includes a photograph of the two CASA 2.111s brought to England for filming. The caption says ” . . . at Bovingdon, Herts, in September 1968 when aircraft used in the ‘Battle of Britain’ film were displayed to the press”.

As stated in ‘post 2’ of this thread:-

“That said there was a transition of aircraft to Bovingdon and Henlow from Duxford at the end of filming.”

In the broadest sense RAF Bovingdon was a base used by the the film company in the making of the film, as was RAF Henlow. It was not a base, in the operational sense of ‘filming’, to my knowledge.

Mark

I have an old Ian Allan book – Aeroplanes in Colour – published in 1976 which includes a photograph of the two CASA 2.111s brought to England for filming. The caption says ” . . . at Bovingdon, Herts, in September 1968 when aircraft used in the ‘Battle of Britain’ film were displayed to the press”.

Filmed at Duxford, as was the French airfield.

Many of the Take off shots filmed at Sywell;)

..and ‘Hanover Street’…c1979.

Mark