Piece of Cake

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20 years 7 months

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Some clips found on YouTube.

If you've never seen this series, it's pure pornography for warbird fans - Spitfires, Messerschmitts, Heinkel, even a Dragon Rapide and a Tiger Moth!

First sortie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7ap45hOglM

Heading to France
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioFmoFzdF3s

**That** bridge sequence
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xf3UtmHLKUU
(Heavily editted - think this actually may have been the version used in "Foyle's War")

Downing a Heinkel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QVZ4W_2Iec

Scramble
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFhK59yua3c

"Sage of the Skies"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbeA504VzR8

Strafing runs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmaRKqG9P-c

Enjoy!

Original post

Member for

14 years 4 months

Posts: 433

Good arrows. :D

They were selling the DVD of the whole series at the Battle of Britain Museum at Hawkinge last time I was there for about £8, if anyone's in the area and wants to pick it up. Don't think I've ever seen it elsewhere!

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18 years 1 month

Posts: 1,318

It is available online. Got mine thru a link on this site a few years back

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14 years 8 months

Posts: 562

Where was it filmed?

And thanks for the links...............!

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20 years 7 months

Posts: 18,353

Off the top of my head:

South Cerney, Wiltshire, was a former RAF base, literally just down the road from the chateau location. It played the role of "RAF Kingsmere" at the start of the programme.

Charlton Park, Wiltshire, doubled for the French chateau at "St Pierre" (especially handy as the estate has/had a runway literally right up to the front door!).

The bridge was Winston Bridge, Co. Durham.

Gayle's Farm, Friston, was used as the airfield location ("RAF Bodkin Hazel") in the latter half (episodes 5 and 6) of the series.

As for aircraft:

Spitfires: Ia AR213, IXb MH434, IXe ML417, IXc NH238 and Pr.XI PL983. The then-Confederate Air Force Spitfire IX MK297 is seen briefly in the "Heinkel shoot-down" sequence, as well.

Messerschmitts: G-BOML, G-HUNN and D-FEHD

Heinkel 111: the then-Confederate Air Force example (sadly no longer with us).

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17 years 9 months

Posts: 245

Good arrows. :D

They were selling the DVD of the whole series at the Battle of Britain Museum at Hawkinge last time I was there for about £8, if anyone's in the area and wants to pick it up. Don't think I've ever seen it elsewhere!


Amazon have it here
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Piece-Cake-Complete-Boyd-Gaines/dp/B002GDM2XC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1268740152&sr=1-1

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15 years 8 months

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Watched its filming & shuddered!!

= Tim

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14 years 1 month

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The bridge was Winston Bridge, Co. Durham.

I go over that bridge quite often- God knows how they did that!

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20 years 7 months

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Carefully, and with The Best* at the helm of the Spit... ;)

*Ray Hanna, as if people needed reminding!

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14 years 9 months

Posts: 703

Watched its filming & shuddered!!

= Tim

Hello Tim,

I'm wondering if you'd be kind enough to give us your impressions of the book and TV series, I think everyone here would value your opinion on them. I know there was a hell of a storm generated by veterans when the series was first broadcast, would you be among them?

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14 years 1 month

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Carefully, and with The Best* at the helm of the Spit... ;)

*Ray Hanna, as if people needed reminding!

The nearby Winston Bridge Caravan Park has a depiction of the Spit and the bridge as their, sort of, emblem thingy... Will try get a photo next time I'm that way on.

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15 years 8 months

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The Rapide was Brian Woodford's G-ACZE, although I think G-ADDD/JHO was in there somewhere if my memory serves me correctly - it was just after we sold it. 'Le Touquet' was in fact Marshalls at Cambridge!

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15 years 8 months

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Adler Tag - RIP. I wrote Derek at the time & that's my lot. There are several sensible reviews on the net (far more searching than I could write) which argue both sides.

You'll have seen this before (?) but just have to note that you're at the top of the page!

= Tim

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14 years 9 months

Posts: 703

My goodness Tim, no I hadn't seen that before. Many thanks for sharing such a gem with us- it seems you had a busy couple of days! It makes for an interesting and ofcourse sobering read- so many shot up, wounded and killed all on the one page, and hospitalised yourself ofcourse. I hope you haven't had to buy a drink since!

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24 years 2 months

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The nearby Winston Bridge Caravan Park has a depiction of the Spit and the bridge as their, sort of, emblem thingy... Will try get a photo next time I'm that way on.

This you mean Blue_2.

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20 years 7 months

Posts: 18,353

The Rapide was Brian Woodford's G-ACZE, although I think G-ADDD/JHO was in there somewhere if my memory serves me correctly - it was just after we sold it. 'Le Touquet' was in fact Marshalls at Cambridge!

That's right. I forgot there were two Rapides - one (I think G-ACZE) in a very nice scarlet/blue scheme, the other in camouflage for one of the French sequences.

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15 years 11 months

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Carefully, and with The Best* at the helm of the Spit... ;)

*Ray Hanna, as if people needed reminding!

Agreed . :)

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14 years 1 month

Posts: 5,088

This you mean Blue_2.

Aye cheers Pimpernel- saves me a job! :)

Member for

20 years 7 months

Posts: 18,353

I'll post this anyway - it's the bridge sequence recycled into an episode of Foyle's War. MH434 with a black-painted spinner, but that's all the "make-up" they used! :rolleyes:

Piece of Cake/Foyle's War sequence

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20 years 7 months

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I watched the whole series again this week. Much of what I've said in the past still stands - the flying sequences are still superb after viewing #69, etc, etc.

One of the great things to look at is this aircraft: Spitfire Pr.XI PL983/G-PRXI.
http://www.military-airshows.co.uk/spits/s00-983.jpg
(Pic from www.military-airshows.co.uk. Incidentally, I have a similar picture somewhere - this must have been taken at the Battle of Britain show at Duxford in 2000!)

I know the purists will disagree, but if I had to make a film about the Battle of Britain, with Spitfires, I'd use the Pr.XI. It just looks so..... right! The nose, the four-blade prop, the pointed rudder and retractable tailwheel. A little bit of "make-up", and only the experts would really know the difference! :p