Television actor and vintage plane enthusiast Martin Shaw will be taking to the skies over Yorkshire and Derbyshire this week for a documentary from the BBC in Yorkshire which aims to uncover brand new information about the RAF's famous wartime Dambusters raid. Shaw, who holds his own private pilot's licence and flies vintage planes, will be flying over the Upper Derwent Valley in the Peak District above Sheffield where 617 squadron famously practised their bomb runs before embarking on their mission to destroy dams in Germany during the Second World War. BBC - Press Office - Martin Shaw discovers the true story of the Dambusters
Wow, brand new info. How long do I have to hold my breath for? "Only by recreating this hugely important moment in wartime history can we fully understand the courage and skill of the airmen who carried it out. For too long their exploits have been lost in a fog of myth and half-truth." Hmm, call me cynical.
Don't know about Martin shaw but 24 may the Tornado's flying down the valley looked very good! unless a lot of new hidden info comes to light I think we have just about seen it all in print.
Dambusters Declassified Mon 13 Sep 2010 19:30 BBC One (East Midlands, Yorkshire only) Martin Shaw takes a fresh look at one of the most famous war stories of them all. The actor, himself a pilot, takes to the skies to retrace the route of the 1943 raid by 617 squadron which used bouncing bombs to destroy German dams. He sheds new light on the story as he separates the fact from the myth behind this tale of courage and ingenuity.... BBC - BBC One Programmes - Dambusters Declassified
Caught most of it, not a lot of new information but an interesting take on the Raid, I felt that the program was elongated to fit the time slot. The worst bit for me was seeing the state of the lovely old Officers Mess at RAF Scampton.
Was anything actually classified after the raid except for the type of bomb used? or is the title just a little misleading? Regards Tom
Today I visited the cemetery where Guy Gibson and his co-pilot are buried. The gardeners were tidying the plot for a ceremony on the 19th to commemorate the day they perished. Will post the photos I took today on that anniversary.
Is this the same prog as shown recently or a continuation of it? Have had a quick look, and I think it's been shown before? Martin Shaw narrating. Mike
Just watched it, missed it first time round. I enjoyed it. Confirmed a few things I had heard about the real raid and Gibson in person. Mike
That's the second time I've watched it, and it confirmed my opinion the first time around. "Celebrity" offerings CAN sometimes be quite good - thinking of of all things Clarkson's on the St. Nazaire raid... ...but Martin Shaw's delivery is a bit slow, moody and lugubrious If he had snapped through it, or just voiced-over to a script we might have freed up five minutes more for more content But then again - if the celebs didn't front something like this, it simply wouldn't get done....
I agree Phil, but I quite enjoyed Shaw's presentation (and I'm not a big fan of his). I thought the Scampton Officer's Mess/Gibson's office shots were particularly good. There should be a museum there but thereagain that would loose the 'abandoned' feel of the place. I take it these areas are not open to the public? Mike
I thought the Scampton Officer's Mess/Gibson's office shots were particularly good. There should be a museum there but thereagain that would loose the 'abandoned' feel of the place. I take it these areas are not open to the public? No, it's still an RAF base....for amongst other things The Red Arrows! But all I can say is....let's see what October 20th brings....it might be slated THEN to pass out of RAF hands...
Phylo, Martin Shaw was trying to use every drop of his acting skill to make something of an inherently flawed programme concept. The viewer was meant to believe that they were significant differences between the film and the reality, but the programme didn't have much in the way of revelations to offer. (So Gibson had marriage problems and that wasn't in the film. Big deal.) Thus the more over-the-top Shaw got in trying to push this line, the more annoying he became.