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Secret Spitfires at the US Air Force Museum IMAX Cinema
Secret Spitfires film was recently invited to US Air Force D-Day 75th Anniversary celebrations at the amazing USAF Museum, Dayton Ohio, to represent the RAF Museum American Foundation. This has been a great honour for us to show this incredible story to a lovely audience who were so moved to see what the British public did in such extraordinary secret during the war and how the American GI’s became support for those local people. We are grateful to the USAF Museum to exhibit the film at their incredible IMAX cinema which has the biggest screen our film has ever been seen, it is an awesome museum! The reaction from the US audience has been wonderful.
A specially carved stone at the Salisbury Cathedral
After a fund raising event for helping the Cathedral, Salisbury Cathedral produced a specially carved stone as a dedication to the story of the Secret Spitfires and those who worked in the secret factories. In tradition of the mainly female workforce who built Spitfires, the stone was carved by a very talented female stone mason Carol Pike. The stone will be placed in the new restoration section on the north face of the cathedral.
Ray Winstone’s support
The great actor is kindly helping spread the word of the film. He has given the producers a moving interview and review of the film that can be seen at the secretspitfires.com website.
Secret Spitfires in cinemas
Going nationwide
After the first cinema outing, the producers of the film were contacted by many new witnesses who had original stories to tell along with more historical facts which were discovered. This, along with request from Showcase and Odeon Cinemas to put the film back out to cinemas to celebrate RAF100, created a new opportunity to extend the film. The original film was edited to a length to suit TV broadcast hence many details and events were left out from the amount of information gathered over 3.5 years in production. As the cinemas were looking for a feature length film, the opportunity was too good to miss and producers went on to film extra material with new found eyewitnesses as well as to put back in many pieces of information, which were originally edited out. Director’s Cut version of the film has many details about the secret dispersal centres such as Southampton, Salisbury, Reading, Trowbridge, Hursley Park, all supported by 65 units spread throughout the country in numerous towns and villages. Along with the famous Castle Bromwich shadow factory in Birmingham, complete production resulted in over 22,000 Spitfires that helped win the war.
The one-day showing
The acclaimed documentary Secret Spitfires will be in cinemas nationwide for a one-day special screening to celebrate RAF100 on July 1st 2018. It is the amazing story of ordinary girls, boys, women, elderly men and a handful of engineers who built Spitfires during the war, hidden behind secret facades of garages, bus depots, barns, a hotel, even a bedroom. The standard version of the film was originally shown in selected cinemas in the south before Christmas for five weeks to packed houses.
Secret Spitfires is the remarkable story of how WWII Spitfire fighter aircraft were built in secret right in the heart of Southern England.
It has taken 75 years for this story to come to light. It tells of how hundreds of girls, boys, women, elderly men and a handful engineers built the iconic fighter plane the Spitfire, in secret, hidden in sheds, depots, garages, barns and even a hotel. So hidden, Hitler’s spies couldn’t find them and have them bombed.
The story starts with Hitler’s determination to destroy Spitfire production and to achieve air superiority as a prelude to invasion. What he and his generals didn’t know was that as they were destroying the main Spitfire factories in Southampton, manufacturing was being moved to secret factories in rural cities, small towns and villages. Three new main centres were set up such as Salisbury, Trowbridge and Reading which in turn were supplied by many other units hidden around the region such as Aldermarston, Chattis Hill, Eastleigh, Henley, Highpost, Hursley, Newbury, Winchester and Worthy Down. They worked alongside Southampton dispersals and the Castle Bromwich shadow factory in Birmingham to produce over 22,000 Spitfires to help win the war. The secret was so well kept, even the family and friends of the workers never knew what they did and where they worked.
“The Germans never knew of these secret factories even though they had spies in the neighbourhood,” says Ethem Cetintas, the film’s co-director/producer together with Karl Howman, who discovered the remarkable story by a chance encounter with Gary Roberts, Associate Producer/researcher for the project along with historian and secret factory engineer Norman Parker. “To this day, most local inhabitants don’t know what happened, literally on their doorstep.
This documentary demanded to be made to get it on record before no one was left to tell the story first hand. It took three and a half years to research and film and was entirely self-funded.
Details and the film ‘Trailer’ can be seen on the Secret Spitfires website secretspitfires.com
WEBSITES
SECRET SPITFIRES In 1940, the Germans succeed in destroying the Spitfire factories in Southampton, believing they have ended the threat from their nemesis. But unknown to them, the British decide to build Spitfires in secret. Rural Towns and cities in South of England become a major centre for manufacturing Spitfires, hidden in sheds, garages, back gardens, a bus depots and even a hotel. With a workforce mainly made up of unskilled young girls, boys, women, elderly men and a handful of engineers, thousands of Spitfires were built, becoming instrumental in winning the war. Witnesses account this never before told story of amazing achievement, recounting times of terrible sadness as well as joyous times that include GI’s, a Glen Miller concert and a Joe Louis boxing match. Set against a backdrop of picturesque English countryside, the RAF pilots who fly them today and of course, the iconic Spitfires themselves. This incredible story concludes with Vera Lynne reciting a moving poem written by a Spitfire pilot.
WEBSITES
SECRET SPITFIRES
Synopsis of content
Secret Spitfires is the story of the hundreds of young girls, boys, women, few elderly men and a handful of engineers who built Spitfires in secret during WW2. Spitfires were the nemesis of the Luftwaffe and the instrument which halted Hitler’s plans for invasion. At great costs to themselves, Luftwaffe was ordered to destroy the Spitfire factories and upon completing this task, Germans were convinced they had now halted the production of the Spitfires for good.
After the destruction of the main factories in Southampton by Luftwaffe, a secret plan was put into action to disperse manufacturing of Spitfires to secret factories in rural cities, small towns and villages. Three new main centres were set up; Salisbury, Trowbridge & Reading which were all connected to multiple units and workshops at places such as Aldermarston, Chattis Hill, Eastleigh, Henley, Highpost, Hursley, Newbury, Winchester, Worthy Down, and at dispersed locations around the spiritual home of the Spitfire, Southampton. Sheds, workshops, garages, bus depots and even a local hotel were used to build fuselages, wings, tails and then assembled to complete aircraft which were then flown out by ATA girls to awaiting RAF pilots. They worked alongside Southampton dispersals and the Castle Bromwich shadow factory in Birmingham, together to produce over 22,000 Spitfires. The workforce were mainly unqualified young girls, women, boys and elderly men guided by a handful of engineers who worked in secret, around the clock to build thousands of Spitfires which were critical in winning the Battle of Britain. They did not even tell their parents and families what they did. Germans never knew of these secret factories even though they had spies in the neighbourhood and to this day, local inhabitants do not know of this amazing feat and the well kept secret of the Spitfires continues.
Norman Parker, now in his 90’s who was an engineer in the final assembly plant and historical adviser to the film, takes us from the original bombed sites of the Southampton factories to the many factory sites scattered in the Southern area which became major producers of Spitfires building thousands of aircraft. Along the way we meet various men and women who worked at the factories who tell their stories of living in such hard times with so many sad events that changed their lives. But it wasn’t all bad, especially with the arrival of the American GIs training in the region for the landings who brought Glenn Miller concerts, dances, Joe Louis boxing match along with doughnuts, ice-creams and stockings.
RAF Coningsby supplies the perspective of the Typhoon pilots who are the Spitfire pilots of today. We are taken to the BBMF centre where one of the largest collections of WW2 Spitfires, Hurricanes and Lancasters are kept and maintained. We see the ground force in action with the many RAF men and girls working on the Spitfires, getting them ready for their pilots. We speak to the modern pilots who love flying the Spitfires and why they prefer it to the modern aircraft. They demonstrate the capabilities of the Spitfires, display a Typhoon flying with a Spitfire as well as the final flight of the Vulcan with twelve Spitfires in tow.
The Spitfire was built as a war machine which became the symbol of resistance, survival and honour for a whole nation. It became the pride of those girls, women, men and boys who built them in secret in great hardship without rewards and through all this adversity, it became the symbol of peace.
The film comes to a close with Dame Vera Lynn who reads an exclusive version of the famous poem High Flight written by a Spitfire pilot who died in the war.
WEBSITES
Gallery
ATA girl Mary Ellis reunited with her Spitfire
Cathedral Stone
Crew of secret factory girls pose by the Spitfire wing they have finished
Famous ATA pilot Joy Lofthouse in her uniform ready to pick up a SPitfire
Girls working at the final assembly plant finishing the Spitfire ready for testing
Historical advisor and secret factory engineer Norman Parker
Historical Advisor and Spitfire engineer Norman Parker in front of Wollston Factory on Itchen River-Southampton
Modern day RAF pilots who fly Spitfires at the BBMF RAF Coningsby
Nemesis of Luftwaffe The Spitfire
New Spitfires are lined up ready for the RAF
Norman at Cathedral
Riveter Girl Betty with her rivet gun
Riveter Girl Betty with her rivet gun_Old-New
Riveter girls and boys assembling a fuselage
Riveter girls at work at the factory
Riveter girls working on a Spitfire in a jig
Salisbury
Sarum and South Wiltshire sponsered Spitfire during the war
Secret Factory centres after Southampton bombings
Secret Factory workers
Secret Spitfires Directors Cut Cinema poster Landscape
Secret Spitfires Directors Cut CINEMA poster Portrait
Secret Spitfires stone dedication by Salisbury Cathderal – Detail
Secret Spitfires Stone Mason Carol Pike from Salisbury Cathedral restoration
SecretSpitfires Stone dedication by Cathedral – L-R Ethem Cetintas, Norman Parker, Canon Ian Woodward, Gary Roberts
Spitfire brought in for maintenance at RAF Coningsby BBMF
Spitfire getting ground test before test pilots take it up
Spitfire ghoing into maintenance at RAF Coningsby BBMF
Spitfire in the sky
Spitfire maintenance at RAF Coningsby BBMF
Spitfire secret welding Shop
Spitfires in the air
Todays Spitfire pilot Squadron Leader Andy -Milli- Millikin
Todays Spitfire pilot WIng Commander Justin -Hells- Helliwel
Today’s Spitfire the Typhoon follows a Spitfire at a display at BBMF
Wings meet fuselage in the assembly plant Highpost
Young girls and elderly men put spitfires wings together
Norman Parker with Spitfire he worked on
Norman Parker with his flight sponsors
Norman Parker with his daughters Sally and Gill
Norman Parker Shakes pilots hand
Norman Parker in the cockpit
Norman Parker in cockpit_3
Norman Parker in cockpit_2
Norman Parker explains procedure to Biggin Hill engineer
Norman Parker Biggin Hill_1
Secret Spitfires film screening at US Air Force Museum IMAX Theatre
Secret Spitfires film screening at US Air Force Museum IMAX Theatre_2
Secret Spitfires film screening at US Air Force Museum IMAX Theatre_3
Secret Spitfires film screening at US Air Force Museum IMAX Theatre_4
Secret Spitfires invited to US Air Force Museum to celebrate 75th anniversary of D-Day
Secret Spitfires invited to US Air Force Museum to celebrate 75th anniversary of D-Day_2
Secret Spitfires invited to US Air Force Museum to celebrate 75th anniversary of D-Day_3
Secret Factory Girl Joan Burrough
