Made quickly and impulsively by Powell, using many personal items (and his dogs!), this short film dramatises one of the inspirational moments of the Battle of Britain phase of WW2, and anticipates many of the themes of A Matter of Life and Death. A letter from a young airman had appeared posthumously in “The Times” and was quickly reprinted as a pamphlet. Its tone was not only patriotic – ‘history resounds with illustrious names who have given all [for] the British Empire, where there is a measure of peace, justice and freedom for all’ – but also coolly mystical, hinting at the strong sense of destiny and spiritual survival shared by many during the inter-war years. All Powell’s heroes – T. E. Lawrence, Captain Scott – are here, in an intensely English ‘anthem for doomed youth’.

Ian Christie