Battle of Britain

This month is the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain; I'm a bit of a history buff, so I have been watching the different television programmes that have been on commemorating the anniversary, and getting new insights into the men who fought, and what it was really like being there.

The BBC have had a whole season of TV on over the last month, and I've really enjoyed watching some fantastic programmes

First Light is a Drama-documentary mixing modern images and storytelling of a veteran with a dramatisation of some of the moments he experienced during the Battle of Britain. At the age of just 18, Geoffrey Wellum was one of the youngest spitfire pilots to go into combat in the Battle of Britain. I really enjoyed the way that this was constructed, with the story played out as it would of happened, and experiencing from Geoffrey's perspective what going into battle would have been like. Knowing that the story was taken from true to life events made it more interesting, and seeing Geoffrey now made it very poignant.

Another show I was surprised by was Battle of Britain hosted Ewan McGreggor and his brother Colin, who is himself a pilot with the RAF, in their take on the events. Ewan is a great story teller, and speaking to veterans you could tell he was in awe of their achievements. Colin wowed as he learned to pilot some of the iconic planes of the period, including a Hurricane, but finishing with a Spitfire. A touching moment at the end where Colin lets Ewan go up in the Spitfire as it flies in formation as it would have done at the battle was very sweet; Ewan's sheer excitement and child like awe really brought it to life.


It got me thinking about vintage themed items from the era, and whilst tidying up my craft room I found a stack of 1940's dress and knitting patterns; so evocative of the period, if only I could get around to scaling up some of those old dress patterns to fit me - I'm a bit bigger than the average 1940's woman!

As a little part of the remembrance, I've created a Battle of Britain themed treasury to celebrate the event, so please take a look!

Debs