Flyby PC

Wish I knew Olham, I really do. Some of the best CGI I've ever seen. Some of the other clips, like 1945 are still excellent, but you know they are CGI. But Merlins and Shiden-Kai are particularly good. Spliced in with some footage of real people, I reckon this fella could do just about anything and make it 100% convincing. I agree with the Spitfire, quite beautiful as a piece of design. I feel the same way about the Mosquito. Something about them both just looks 'right'. @Duce - Your link isn't working for me Duce. Can you re-post it?

CGI is fine with me. Checkout Tochy's videos at the bottom - http://www.k4.dion.ne.jp/~suppon/ That is all done by computer. Merlins is unbelievable!!!

Thing is, getting your tackle out in public is gross indecencey, and jail or not, I think the clown could even find himself on the sex offenders register. That should take the grin off the stupid gits face. Like that story Uncleal. Go vets!

No. Secret Army was outstanding, and Yvette with the beret was the lovely Jan Francis. Couldn't believe it when they blew her up in a bombing raid on Lille(?). But the thing I remember, or think I remember was a documentary. @WUK - You're right of course, there were war crimes committed by all sides and it's easy to forget. There's footage of Japanese soldiers in the immediate aftermath of the war running the gauntlet, with ex POWs armed with all manner of things, clubs, pick axes... Not pretty, and probably not the worst of what happened to them. I've heard a few things about the Foreign Legion in Algeria too. You don't really want to believe it, but part of you knows it could very well be true. War is a nasty business. & @ Hood. Correct too, and it wasn't just enemy soldiers. There were occassions when civilian lives had to be taken to prevent missions being compromised. Either they couldn't be trusted, or couldn't be left behind to face interrogation. I know this happened in Burma, and later in Korea. & remember the Bravo Two Zero book when the SAS were compromised by the little goat herd? What would you have done in the same position? They let him live, but paid the price.

Good to see you again Sittingbison. Yes, have to confess I let a few things at the SO get under my skin. Seems a long time ago now. Once all that experience and database was lost, I never felt the same about the place. Missed a few old faces, but the time was right to move on. My best contribution to the forum was trying to help folk get more out their CFS3. I didn't know all the answers, but I did know where to find the most helpful threads. Once all that background info had been dumped in the way it was, it felt like there was nothing I could contribute anymore. I was also just a wee bit annoyed about it all. Good time to leave. Still, that's old news now. Still flying CFS3? I do from time to time, but I have to admit I dumped my ETO in disgust, but there were some cracking advances last time I looked. Pat & Jeffs airfields were a big plus, and Viso's tanks and stuff were straight out the top drawer, excellent little critters. Hmmm, you've got me thinking now....that Churchill relative thing is ringing a bell, but it's still very faint. Won't sleep now til I remember.... Did your program by any chance have an interview with a soldier type in a black beret saying he was part of a 4 man hit squad? He talked about his weapons, and that we'd have to take his word for it because we'd never ever see any records to confirm it. I'm sure I didn't imagine it, but it was a long time ago, - and I mean 'black and white TV' ago.

Hmmm, that must be an American phenomenon. I was once a TA Para, so rubbed shoulders with regular Paras and non para Regiments. I wouldn't have called the TA Para elite, but the regulars were a different story. There's specialisation off course, REME are engineers, signals, artillery and such like, but that's not the same thing as elite. If you're ever in fight against elite troops, you're in trouble. They are fitter, they are tuned for combat, and switched on all the time. They are better shots, they will work together as a team instinctively, and will do whatever it takes to get the job done. They will be better led too. Many elite units are very dissmissive of lesser regiments, but this isn't an ego thing, they simply are superior fighting troops with absolute conviction they would destroy you in battle. Don't get the hump about it, they almost certainly would. They will go further, faster and carry more, with less rest or food, but their already higher than normal combat effectiveness will scarely diminish. It's no accident that 2 Para were first to relieve Port Stanley in the Falklands, having tabbed cross country from the earlier combat at Goose Green. (TAB is Tactical Advance to Battle). Contrast this with the Welsh Guards who had to be brought up in support by ship because they couldn't keep up, but remained on board because disembarkation required them to carry their kit ashore while two Majors argued the toss, which left their ships sitting ducks for the first light air attack which sunk the Sir Galahad. That is the difference between elite, and one click off. When you exit your aircraft jumping into a combat zone, statistically you have seven minutes to live. That's fine, because you only have 3 minutes of ammunition. Your mission is typically to hold strategic objectives behind enemy lines against everything that may be thrown at you from armour to air assault, and you pretty much have to do it with what you can carry on your back, while placing all of your faith in the normal army to fight through to relieve you. You don't have your ticket home, you start out 'surrounded'. You do volunteer, because you get the jobs nobody could otherwise order you to do. I respect elite troops, frankly because they scare me.

I think the Battle of Britain is my favourite War film. All time. Got a love/hate thing going on with 633 squadron films. Love the Mosquitos to bits, but the film itself is hard work. One of them is based on the Amiens prison raid, but it's so loosely based that it's relevance is almost incidental. It's one of those rare times when the truth is even more remarkable than the fiction. The Longest Day is probably my second all time favourite, and I've no niggles about it at all. It has so much information cleverly condensed that the odd discrepancy doesn't spoil a thing. Works for me. I'd like to see The Battle of Britain re-made with better special effects too, but I don't think it'll happen. It would take one helluva film to knock Battle of Britain off the top of my list. I've never understood why they've never made a better Battle of the Bulge film. The true story has all the necessary ingredients for an absolutely brilliant film, no fiction required. Maybe the time is coming with CGI. Just hope they keep it simple, so somebody watching it in another 50 years knows exactly what it was all about. No frills, just inspiring American courage and determination while cut off and outgunned, pitted against the finest German armour of the whole war. Come on USA, get on with it! I'd be first in the queue to see a film like that. And if it ever happens, and there's somebody in the film crew say's "Hey, I've thought of something to make the story more entertaining", take him out the back and shoot him. Twice.

Watched the documentary. OK, but I wouldn't go hunting down the video. Not half as gripping or informative as I thought it would be. I'm sure I read something years and years ago about small teams of brits who set out to avenge nazi injustices when the culprit was beyond the reach of normal means. In my mind this was linked to Stalag Luft 111, but also to a British spy who was caught, tortured, and hung from a lampost with two parts of his anatomy removed (if you follow me), and left to die. I'm sure the Gestapo man escaped to South America, but later on got 'mugged' quite nastily in a back alley. I only ever saw this reference once, years ago, and I've never seen any reference to it ever again. Kick myself that I cant remember more, but then again, maybe such things shouldn't be on the TV.

I'll need to check UKW, but I'm sure my DVD of the film came with extras, including a documentary about the filming. Been a while since I watched it, but I remember the German planes were mostly Spanish. For most of the time, the filmcrew only had 2 He111s, but sometimes 5 or 7 (can't remember), so you either see two or 7. The other bit I remember was the sequence where the pilot bales out (a dummy naturally) and keeps falling because his parachute doesn't open. Very poigniant, but the truth of the matter was the parachute was supposed to work properly, and the poor chap who screwed up the very expensive shot was sacked, only for the footage to be some of the most intense 30 seconds of the film.... I'd forgotten about that disc, but I'll need to dig it out. Adolph Galland featured tall in it too. @ Mr Lucky, I know the story of the Memphis Belle is true (give or take), but I heard when the Mem B film came out that the original plan was for a very similar story focussed on a Lancaster crew surviving to complete a similar tour of 30 or 60 ops. The producer, David Puttnam, wanted to make the film about a RAF Lancaster bomber, but no British studio had the money and no Hollywood studio had the interest until it was decided to update the original Memphis Belle film from 1944.

I love the Battle of Britain too, my all time favourite film, with contributions from Adolph Galland too, and real aircraft too. Superb. But even so, for the record, Keith Park was a Kiwi, Sailor Mallon was South African, and Hugh Dowding was a Scot. My point is, it wouldn't have detracted from the film to reflect this, (especially given how they were treated in real life). But it was better for the box office to cram the film with stars, but to me, there's a little part of the story missing.

Don't think I've even seen The last Unicorn, Dinner for One, or Little Lord Fonteroy. Going back to the Great Escape, it was based on Stalag Luft 111, but Steve McQueen and his motorbike was complete fiction - it was McQueen who wanted to do it and his bike was a British Triumph (650?) not built until the 60's. In fact there weren't even any Americans in the camp. (There had been, and some took part in the digging, but by the time of the escape they'd been moved to another camp. The prominance of Americans in the film is a sop to the American film makers. It's a bit like Saving Private Ryan. It was Brits and Canadians who had to hold off 2nd SS “Das Reich” Panzer Division in the weeks following D-Day, no Americans were anywhere near them. As for U-571 and it's Enigma Code, don't get me started.... I also believe the true story of the Memphis Belle was supposed to be a true story about a British Lanc, but nobody would fund it unless it was a B17 crew. I'm not having a go at Americans in general, but it seems a little disingenuous considering the roasting they gave Montgomery beefing up his role and stealing their thunder after the Ardennes. It's not just an American phenomenon however. Growing up on War movies in the UK these last 44 years, you'd be forgiven for thinking the Eastern Front never existed. However... The unsuccessful attempt to steal a plane was true, but from a different escape, and I don't know about the forger going blind either. Might have an element of truth in it from somewhere. There was also a lot of stuff smuggled in to the camp via books and parcels, but no reference was made to this because smuggling stuff in and out of prisons is OK if it's for a plucky POW, but not so clever if its for a criminal who's meant to be behind bars. I have also heard that some escapees objected to their secrets being exposed because it could jeapordize future escape plans. Careless talk costs lives and all that. The socks full of sand for getting rid of tunnel debris were actually discovered by the Germans. In fact by watching guys drop the sand, the Germans saw which hut they were coming from and found one of the tunnels. Like most 60's film of the war, 'true' storylines were often beefed up with other snippets of truth, or had events spanning many months compressed into weeks etc, so that the final film is indeed based on a true story, but it's actually a composite of many different storys. Escape from Colditz springs to mind. It's so unfair to national identities it makes my toes curl. Only 3 made it to freedom from the great escape. 2 Norwegians and a Dutchman. I'm not trying to be deliberately anally retentive, but I find the actual truth so much more interesting than the movies.

Stonemason. Or stone cutter as you say in the US. Best work in progress? - That'll be my 3 apprentices.

It's not really a quote, but I had a mate once thinking of joining the Fleet Air Arm, and got a flying lesson to see if he could hack it. As luck would have it, his pilot was an ex FAA pilot, so his 20 min lesson turned into an hour. The control column looked very familiar from lots of combat films, including the big red 'fire' button. The pilot must have read his mind, shook his head saying "Thats not the guns, it's the intercom, and the Tower is sick of people calling in 'NA-GA-NA-GA-NA-GA-NA-GA'". I suppose you had to be there, but it tickled me.

You fellas ever see a program with Ray Mears? He's a survivalist, and if I remember correctly, he used tree sap and ash and a bit of heat to make a glue to stick the arrow head to the shaft + a little binding. Might have missed out an ingrediant, it's hard to remember what he says, but it definitely worked like a tough epoxy. If you smashed the arrowhead, or even loosened it, you could heat it up again and re-set it. Forget Bear Grills with his raw fish etc. Ray Mears makes survivalist cooking look quite appetising. Edit - Oh yeah, Ray Mears vs scorpion? Money's on Ray.

New or old, they're still incredible pictures. I've definitely not seen some of them before, but even so, I think some of the Pearl Harpour photos are some of the most incredible and imotive war images ever captured. It's a terrible thing that Robert Capa's photographs of D-Day were all but lost because the bloke developing the film made such a mess of it.

Seen the one with the buffalo? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6UzQI119us Go Daddy Buffalo!!

My fault, but we're not quite connecting 100% Lou. There's no disagreement here. By calling it a trinket, I mean the medal itself is not supposed to be worth anything. That's not the point of it. It's value is the history and deed which saw it earned, but not the price it costs to make or buy it. That's why we issue medals, not cheques.

I'm with Stiffy I think. It does make sense, that you'd see the raid coming and watch the spectacle believing there's no danger. And your potato queue might actually be a queue for potatos!!! As for rationing, not so sure. There was some rationing, but I thought it was later, as from Springtime in 1918. If this was May 1917, I don't think there was rationing, - but there might very well have been shortages. Good call Stiffy.

I understand what you're asking Wels, but the phrase is a bit obscure. Normally, to 'see something through' means to stick with something from start to finish, or 'see it through to the bitter end'. It could mean the author has grabbed the kids to keep hold of them while the raid is on. Maybe, but I'm not sure. Potato queue? No ideas. Maybe meeting the usual faces you'd meet queueing at the shops, only queueing to get into a bomb shelter. I'm not really in to poetry, but I find the language a bit too obscure to be certain what the author meant, (which probably means I've misunderstood something), but that's my take on the poem. I hope other more literate people will add more.

Thing is, there are medals earned for valour above and beyond, and campaign medals earned just for being there. I'm sure what matters to a veteran having earned a medal for valour, is that his citation was witnessed and considered appropriate by his peers, and his mates. It also reflects well on his regiment. Whether the medal is no longer in his possession, these other values remain forever. The medal itself is just a trinket. The Victoria Cross is a prime example of this, being made from a base metal of merely token intrinsic value. (I know where the brass comes from, but I digress...). It's merely a trinket as I say, but it's what it represents which is so powerful. We shouldn't underestimate the worth of campaign medals either. You just need to see how unhappy the Merchant Navy sailing convoys in the North Atlantic were at having no campaign medal. It wasn't the value of the trinket, but the hurtful absence of recognition it represented. In my personal opinion, the market value of a particular medal is just that, what someone will pay to possess it. I don't equate that market value with it's 'bravery' value. The bravery or merit is determined by the award of the medal, not what it's worth. It's like your driving licence. Once you've passed your test, you can lose your licence, but get a duplicate. It's just a piece of paper. The value is having passed your test. In years to come, the document may be of interest to a collector and have a monetary value, but it's a commodity value, no longer a licence to drive.

For me, the only controversy stems from the circumstance of how the medal became available to collectors. I've have heard that veterans who have fallen on hard times and been forced to sell their medals (even a VC) just to keep their heads above water. The controversy I might add, is the hardship of the veteran, not the willing buyer for his medal. I'm sure also that some veterans had little regard for their medals. There were more important things in life. I've recently quoted Major Cain VC, who's daughter never knew he'd earned the VC until after his death. To quote Harry Patch, he looked upon 11th Nov Remembrance Day as 'just show business'. His remembrance day was much more personal, 22nd September, when his three best mates were killed, and his own war ended with himself injured by shrapnel. It takes all sorts, and who are we to judge? I know Harry didn't mean any disrespect, - but at the same time, I totally get what he meant. I would assemble your collection with a clear conscience Lou. I have my fathers WW2 medals, nothing uncommon, Burma Star & stuff, but even though he was my father, they are his medals, not mine. They were his momentos of his war, but I have better momentos of a father.

Just reading Richard Van Emdens book 'The Soldiers War - The Great War through Veterans' Eyes', and came across this which seemed right on topic - "Throughout the war, the nicknames given to the enemy by British soldiers reflected the attitude and feelings of men towards their couterparts at any particular time. Hun, kraut, Boche, squarehead were the more abusive; Allyman, Jerry, Fritz, Johnny, even (surprisingly) Dutchmen, were less abrasive, while sometimes the names seemed to combine respect with abuse, such as 'Brother Boche'. According to one tank officer, Frank Mitchell MC, the names changed as the war progressed. The talk of German 'frightfulness' was at its most vociferous in 1914 and 1915 and as a consequence 'when feeling against them was very strong, they were called the Hun, or simply Huns'. During the Somme offensives in 1916, Fritz came into use, probably from a growing respect for the enemy's fighting qualities. Mitchell believed that the name 'Jerry' came into common usage later in the war, also as a sign of respect." Don't know the origins for sure, but I always thought Jerries was derived from the GER in German.

You could try downloading somebody elses clip from youtube, and see if you can strip off their subtitles.

The PgcDemux link isn't working for me VP.

Major Robert Henry Cain V.C. - http://en.wikipedia....bert_Henry_Cain Tiger Tanks 0 - Para with a PIAT 6 Edit - The Citation. "War Office, 2nd November, 1944. The KING has been graciously pleased to approve awards of the VICTORIA CROSS to: — Captain (temporary Major) Robert Henry Cain (129484), The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, (attd. The South Staffordshire Regiment) (I Airborne Division) (Salcombe, Devon). In Holland on 19th September, 1944, Major Cain was commanding a rifle company of the South Staffordshire Regiment during the Battle of Arnhem when his company was cut off from the rest of the battalion and during the next six days was closely engaged with enemy tanks, self-propelled guns and infantry. The Germans made repeated attempts to break into the company position by infiltration and had they succeeded in doing so the whole situation of the Airborne Troops would have been jeopardised. Major Cain, by his outstanding devotion to duty and remarkable powers of leadership, was to a large extent personally responsible for saving a vital sector from falling into the hands of the enemy. On 20th September a Tiger tank approached the area held by his company and Major Cain went out alone to deal with it armed with a Piat. Taking up a position he held his fire until the tank was only 20 yards away when he opened up. The tank immediately halted and turned its guns on him, shooting away a corner of the house near where this officer was lying. Although wounded by machine gun bullets and falling masonry, Major Cain continued firing until he had scored several direct hits, immobilised the tank and supervised the bringing up of a 7.5 mm. howitzer which completely destroyed it. Only then would he consent to have his wounds dressed. In the next morning this officer drove off three more tanks by the fearless use of his Piat, on each occasion leaving cover and taking up position in open ground with complete disregard for his personal safety. During the following days, Major Cain was everywhere where danger threatened, moving amongst his men and encouraging them by his fearless example to hold out. He refused rest and medical attention in spite of the fact that his hearing had been seriously impaired because of a perforated eardrum and he was suffering from multiple wounds. On the 25th September the enemy made a concerted attack on Major Cain's position, using self-propelled guns, flame throwers and infantry. By this time the last Piat had been put out of action and Major Cain was armed with only a light 2" mortar. However, by a skilful use of this weapon and his daring leadership of the few men still under his command, he completely demoralized the enemy who, after an engagement lasting more than three hours, withdrew in disorder. Throughout the whole course of the Battle of Arnhem, Major Cain showed superb gallantry. His powers of endurance and leadership were the admiration of all his fellow officers and stories of his valour were being constantly exchanged amongst the troops. His coolness and courage under incessant fire could not be surpassed." F"*!g Airborne! (And a PIAT was universally derided as a hopelessly inadequate piece of crap).