15th September 1940 was the moment the Germans chose to drive the Spitfire from the battlefield. The people on the ground, guiding the Spitfires - spotters, plotters and fitters- will play a vital role in a day that changed the course of World

Teenage pilots

Jul 3rd, 2020 18m 32s

How does it feel to fly the plane that won the war? Two Spitfire pilots - one 18 year old from the Battle of Britain, one from today’sRAF - compare their experiences of unparalleled ecstasy and paralysing fear.Presenter: Tuppence MiddletonPro

Faster and higher

Jun 26th, 2020 18m 33s

It wasn’t just Spitfire production that needed to escape the bombs; the designers of the plane also need to find a safe place to improve the Spitfire to deal with Germany’s latest fighter developments.Presenter: Tuppence MiddletonProducers: Al

New planes, new rules

Jun 19th, 2020 18m 35s

Ramping up Spitfire production requires another new factory. Bigger, better, full of cutting-edge machinery and the best workers in the business. But it’s a catastrophe – one that nearly costs Britain dearly.

The Shilling factor

Jun 12th, 2020 17m 58s

As brilliant as the Spitfire is, it has one major flaw. Take her into a steep dive and fuel can’t reach the engine. A solution is urgently needed. That’s a job for the fastest woman in Britain: champion motorcycle racer and pioneering engineer,

Women take control

Jun 5th, 2020 18m 26s

The new Spitfires need to be flown to RAF bases desperate for reinforcements. That’s the job of the ATA Girls - the female flyers of World War Two, some of the first women in Britain to receive the same wages as their male counterparts.Presente

Makeshift wedding

May 29th, 2020 18m 28s

Spitfire production is getting back on track, but the search for locations continues. Out into the surrounding countryside, from brickworks to country manors to empty fields, the dispersal continues.Presenter: Tuppence MiddletonProducers: Alas

Makeshift factories

May 22nd, 2020 17m 28s

Amid the smouldering ruins of the Spitfire factory, a new strategy emerges: instead of building the plane in one factory, it will be built piece by piece in garages, workshops and laundries.Presenter: Tuppence MiddletonProducers: Alasdair Cros

Crowdfunding

May 15th, 2020 18m 30s

The struggle against the Nazis has to be fought by ordinary people as much as by the army and air force. Communities across Britain are enlisted to raise funds for Spitfires. Villages, sports clubs, trades unions and churches devise money-makin

Phoenix

May 8th, 2020 18m 27s

The Spitfire factory was a priority target for German bombers. The workers endured raid after raid. If vital Spitfires are going to continue to be built, then a plan is desperately needed.Presenter: Tuppence MiddletonProducers: Alasdair Cross

Introducing Spitfire: The People’s Plane

May 5th, 2020 3m 33s

Before a plane could save a country, the people had to build it. This is the story of a beautiful and deadly icon of resistance, built and flown against extraordinary odds.

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