Saturday Play - Spitfire!

A moving drama by Mike Walker about the most famous British fighter aircraft in history, marking the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Framed by recollections from veteran Geoffrey Wellum, the play features specially made recordings of RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Spitfires, including the only Spitfire still flying today to have fought in the Battle. Inspired by real people and real events, the play traces RJ Mitchell's design from creation to legend and the fortunes of two young pilots who join a frontline Spitfire squadron just as the Battle of Britain begins. It stars Samuel West, Samuel Barnett, Rory Kinnear and Ruth Wilson. Many factors were important in the Battle, but it was the excellence of the Spitfire which most famously evened the odds in the fight against the Luftwaffe. Mike Walker's play takes us close to this magnificent aircraft and gives us a feeling of what it was like to fly the legendary plane which became, in test pilot Jeffrey Quill's words, 'a symbol of defiance and victory'. Pirate ..... Rory Kinnear Ted ..... Joe Coen RJ Mitchell ..... Samuel West Tony ..... Samuel Barnett Stanley Baldwin ..... David Horovitch Air Marshal Dowding ..... David Troughton Squadron Commander ..... Stephen Critchlow Newsreel Announcer ..... Ben Crowe Sammy ..... Lucas Motion Alice ..... Abigail Thaw Daphne ..... Ruth Wilson Technical Advisor: Patrick Bishop Original music/sound design: David Chilton Producer/Director: Amber Barnfather A Goldhawk Essential production for BBC Radio 4.