Encyclopedia > Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines
Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines or How I Flew from London to Paris in 25 Hours 11 Minutes, usually referred to as Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines, is a 1965 British comedy film directed by Ken Annakin. The story is set in 1910, at the dawn of aviation, when Lord Rawnsley, an English press magnate, offers a prize of £10,000 to the winner of an air race from London to Paris to prove that Britain is "number one in the air". Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ...
Ken Annakin (born August 10, 1914) is a British film director. ...
Stuart Whitman Stuart Whitman (born February 1, 1926 or, according to other sources 1928 or 1929) is an American actor arguably best known for playing Marshal Jim Crown in the western television series Cimarron Strip in 1967, co-starring with John Wayne in the western movie The Comancheros in 1961...
Sarah Miles (b. ...
James Fox (born 19 May 1939) is an English actor. ...
Ronald Alfred Goodwin (February 17, 1925 - January 8, 2003) was a British composer and conductor best known for his film scores. ...
Christopher Challis (born 18th March, 1919) is a distinguihsed British cinematographer who has worked on more than 70 feature films since starting in the industry in the 1940s. ...
Anne V. Coates (born 12 December 1925) is a Academy Award winning British film editor with a 40-year-plus career in film editing. ...
Twentieth (20th) Century Fox Film Corporation (known from 1935 to 1985 as Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation) is one of the major American film studios. ...
// Events Top grossing films North America Mary Poppins The Sound of Music, starring Julie Andrews Goldfinger My Fair Lady Whats New Pussycat? Shenandoah The Sandpiper Father Goose Academy Awards Best Picture: The Sound of Music - Argyle, Twentieth Century-Fox Best Actor: Lee Marvin - Cat Ballou Best Actress: Julie Christie...
The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...
Monte Carlo or Bust is a 1969 comedy film based around the Monte Carlo Rally. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 791 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (2576 × 1952 pixel, file size: 1. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 791 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (2576 × 1952 pixel, file size: 1. ...
In 1910 the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company (later known as the Bristol Aeroplane Company) built an improved version of a Henri Farman biplane, which became known as the Bristol Boxkite. ...
The museum building. ...
// Events Top grossing films North America Mary Poppins The Sound of Music, starring Julie Andrews Goldfinger My Fair Lady Whats New Pussycat? Shenandoah The Sandpiper Father Goose Academy Awards Best Picture: The Sound of Music - Argyle, Twentieth Century-Fox Best Actor: Lee Marvin - Cat Ballou Best Actress: Julie Christie...
Ken Annakin (born August 10, 1914) is a British film director. ...
1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ...
This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...
City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Floating not submerging) Paris Eiffel tower as seen from the esplanade du Trocadéro. ...
The original screenplay, written by Ken Annakin and Jack Davies, was nominated for an Academy Award. The film was photographed in 70 mm Todd-AO by Christopher Challis. Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ...
Todd-AO was a widescreen film format developed in the mid 1950s. ...
The success of the film prompted Annakin to write (again with Jack Davies) and direct another race movie, Monte Carlo or Bust (aka Those Daring Young Men in Their Jaunty Jalopies), released in 1969, this time involving vintage cars with the story set around the Monte Carlo Rally. Monte Carlo or Bust is a 1969 comedy film based around the Monte Carlo Rally. ...
// Cannes Film Festival opens, but closes in support of a French general strike without awarding any prizes. ...
Stephane Sarrazin driving a Subaru Impreza WRC on the Monte Carlo Rally Carlos Sainz driving a Toyota Corolla WRC on the Monte Carlo Rally Carlssons replica 1963 Monte Carlo Saab 96 rally car at Linköping, on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee of SAAB in 1997 The Monte...
Plot
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow. Sarah Miles plays the daughter of Lord Rawnsley (Robert Morley), a newspaper magnate whose favourite to win his race is his daughter's fiancé, Richard Mays (James Fox), flying an Antoinette monoplane. An international cast plays the array of contestants, most of whom live up to their national stereotypes, including the fanatical monocle-wearing Prussian officer (Gert Fröbe), flying a British Eardley-Billing biplane; a sexy Frenchman (Jean-Pierre Cassel) in a Santos-Dumont Demoiselle; and the brash American (Stuart Whitman), flying a Bristol Boxkite, who falls for Lord Rawnsley's daughter. Sarah Miles (b. ...
Robert Morley (May 26, 1908 – June 3, 1992) was an Oscar-nominated British actor who, often in supporting roles, was usually cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment. ...
James Fox (born 19 May 1939) is an English actor. ...
Gert Fröbe playing Auric Goldfinger The title of this article contains the character ö. Where it is unavailable or not desired, the name may be represented as Gert Froebe. ...
Jean-Pierre Cassel is a french actor, born 1932 in Paris. ...
Stuart Whitman Stuart Whitman (born February 1, 1926 or, according to other sources 1928 or 1929) is an American actor arguably best known for playing Marshal Jim Crown in the western television series Cimarron Strip in 1967, co-starring with John Wayne in the western movie The Comancheros in 1961...
The main entertainment comes from the amusing dialogue and characterisations and the daring aerial stunts, with a dash of heroism and gentlemanly conduct thrown in for good measure. Terry-Thomas plays the cheating Sir Percival Ware-Armitage, an Avro Triplane-flying rogue who "never leaves anything to chance". With the help of his bullied and downtrodden servant Courtney (Eric Sykes), he sabotages other aircraft or drugs their pilots - only to get his comeuppance in the end. Terry-Thomas (left) and Clive Morton in a scene from Lucky Jim (1957) Terry-Thomas (Thomas Terence Hoare-Stephens) (14 July 1911 - 8 January 1990) was a distinctive British comic actor of the 1950s and 1960s. ...
Eric Sykes in the Sykes TV series (DVD) The Plank (DVD cover) Eric Sykes, CBE (born May 4, 1923 in Oldham, Lancashire) is a British comedic writer and actor. ...
Spoilers end here.
Aircraft The film is notable for its use of specially constructed reproductions of contemporary aircraft – including a triplane, as well as monoplanes and biplanes. While each aircraft is an accurate replica, some “impersonate” other types. For instance, the Bristol Boxkite is used to represent a typical American biplane of 1910 (say, a Wright or Curtiss), such as might have been flown by the "American pilot" character in the film. A triplane is a fixed-wing aircraft equipped with three sets of wings, each roughly the same size and mounted one above the other. ...
A monoplane is an aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. ...
Hs123 biplane. ...
In 1910 the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company (later known as the Bristol Aeroplane Company) built an improved version of a Henri Farman biplane, which became known as the Bristol Boxkite. ...
The Wright brothers, Orville (August 19, 1871–January 30, 1948) and Wilbur (April 16, 1867–May 30, 1912), were two Americans generally credited with building the worlds first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered, heavier-than-air human flight on December 17, 1903. ...
Glenn H. Curtiss at the Grande Semaine dAviation in France in 1909 Commemorative plaque Tombstone Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an aviation pioneer and founder of the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, now part of Curtiss-Wright Corporation. ...
In addition to the “flying” types - several of the unsuccessful aircraft of the period were represented by “non-flying” replicas. One real vintage aeroplane was used, the Blackburn monoplane “D” belonging to the Shuttleworth Collection – which in return received some of the replicas when the filming was completed. The Shuttleworth Collections Bristol F.2B Fighter The Shuttleworth Collection is an aeronautical and automotive museum located at the Old Warden airfield in Bedfordshire, England. ...
The types that were chosen for the “flying” replicas were all of distinctly different layouts, so as to be easily distinguishable for the least aeronautically sophisticated member of the audience. They were also chosen from types that were reputed to have flown well in or about 1910. In most cases this worked well, but there were a few surprises, adding to an accurate historical assessment of the aircraft concerned.
The Santos-Dumont Demoiselle, one of the forerunners of today's ultralight aircraft – at first could not be made to leave the ground. Eventually it was remembered that Santos-Dumont was a very small man – and a suitably small pilot (a woman!) was found. With the reduced payload the little plane flew quite well. Huntair Pathfinder Mark 1 ultralight at an English airshow Ultralight aviation is a category of recreational flying. ...
Santos-Dumont in his trademark Panama hat. ...
The beautiful Antoinette monoplane was very nearly the first aeroplane to fly the English channel – and won several prizes in early competitions. The replica, following carefully the original structural specifications, proved however to be dangerously “flexible” and was practically uncontrollable until its wing bracing was reinforced with extra wires.
The realism and the attention to detail in the replicas of vintage machines are a major contributor to the enjoyment of the film, and although a few of the flying stunts were achieved through the use of models and cleverly disguised wires, most were “real” flying.
Cast The film featured a host of stars, including: Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Gerald Theron Campion (April 23, 1921 – July 9, 2002) was an English actor best-known for his role as Billy Bunter in a 1950s television adaptation of books by Frank Richards. ...
Jean-Pierre Cassel is a french actor, born 1932 in Paris. ...
Dame Cicely Courtneidge DBE (1 April 1893 – 26 April 1980), born Esmerelda Cicely Courtneidge, was an English actress and comedienne. ...
Irina Demick (16 October 1936-8 October 2004), sometimes credited as Irina Demich was a French actress with a brief career in American films. ...
Fred Emney (February 12, 1900 - December 25, 1980) was an English character actor and comedian. ...
James Fox (born 19 May 1939) is an English actor. ...
Gert Fröbe playing Auric Goldfinger The title of this article contains the character ö. Where it is unavailable or not desired, the name may be represented as Gert Froebe. ...
Biography published in 1978 (1983 paperback reprint shown) Anthony John Hancock, best known as Tony Hancock (May 12, 1924 – June 24, 1968) was a major figure in British television and radio comedy in the 1950s and 1960s. ...
Alfred Hawthorn Hill (21 January 1924 – 20 April 1992), better known as Benny Hill, was a prolific English comic, actor and singer, best known for his television programme, The Benny Hill Show. ...
Yujiro Ishihara (石原裕次郎; Ishihara YÅ«jirÅ, December 28, 1934–July 17, 1987) was a Japanese actor and singer. ...
Gordon Cameron Jackson, OBE (December 19, 1923 - January 15, 1990), was a prolific Scottish character actor, best known for his roles in the film The Great Escape, the spy thriller The Ipcress File, and the television series, Upstairs Downstairs (for which he won a best supporting actor Emmy Award) and...
John Le Mesurier (Bedford, 5th April 1912 – 15th November, 1983), born John Charles Elton Le Mesurier De Somerys Halliley, was a British actor. ...
Zena Marshall (b. ...
Millicent Mary Lillian Martin (born 8 June 1934) is an English actress, singer and comedienne. ...
Sarah Miles (b. ...
Flora Robson (March 28, 1902 - July 7, 1984) was a British actress renowned as one of the great character players and one of Britains theatrical grandes dames. ...
Norman Rossington (24 December 1928 – 21 May 1999) was an English actor best remembered for his roles in The Army Game and the Carry On films. ...
William George Rushton, commonly known as Willie Rushton (August 18, 1937–December 11, 1996) was a British cartoonist, satirist, comedian, actor and performer. ...
Richard Bernard Red Skelton (July 18, 1913 – September 17, 1997) was an American comedian whose greatest impact — in a career which began as a teen circus clown and graduated to vaudeville, Broadway, MGM films, and radio — began when he reached television stardom with The Red Skelton Show (NBC, 1951–1952...
Alberto Sordi, also known as Albertone, (June 15, 1920, Rome - February 25, 2003, Rome) was a beloved Italian actor and a film director. ...
Eric Sykes in the Sykes TV series (DVD) The Plank (DVD cover) Eric Sykes, CBE (born May 4, 1923 in Oldham, Lancashire) is a British comedic writer and actor. ...
Terry-Thomas (left) and Clive Morton in a scene from Lucky Jim (1957) Terry-Thomas (Thomas Terence Hoare-Stephens) (14 July 1911 - 8 January 1990) was a distinctive British comic actor of the 1950s and 1960s. ...
Karl Michael Vogler as Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in Patton (1970) Karl Michael Vogler (born August 28, 1928, in Remscheid, Germany) is a German actor perhaps best-known for his appearance as Erwin Rommel in the George C. Scott film Patton. ...
Sam Wanamaker (born Samuel Watenmaker) (June 14, 1919, Chicago – December 18, 1993, London, England) was an American actor and director. ...
Stuart Whitman Stuart Whitman (born February 1, 1926 or, according to other sources 1928 or 1929) is an American actor arguably best known for playing Marshal Jim Crown in the western television series Cimarron Strip in 1967, co-starring with John Wayne in the western movie The Comancheros in 1961...
Crew Ken Annakin (born August 10, 1914) is a British film director. ...
Christopher Challis (born 18th March, 1919) is a distinguihsed British cinematographer who has worked on more than 70 feature films since starting in the industry in the 1940s. ...
Anne V. Coates (born 12 December 1925) is a Academy Award winning British film editor with a 40-year-plus career in film editing. ...
Ronald Alfred Goodwin (February 17, 1925 - January 8, 2003) was a British composer and conductor best known for his film scores. ...
Ronald William Fordham Searle (born March 3, 1920) is a British cartoonist. ...
Richard Bordeaux Parker (1923-) served as deputy chief of mission in Rabat from 1970-74, as ambassador to Algeria from 1974 to 1977, and finally as ambassador to Morocco from 1978 to 1979. ...
Alan Derek Piggott MBE is one of Britains leading glider pilots and instructors. ...
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