Thread by @whincupm

The battle of #RorkesDrift ended 144 years ago today. A distant battle in a long gone war, its place in popular history relies as much on a film as it does the gallantry rewarded with 11 VCs.

But there's more to the story of the #VictoriaCross and cinema. A thread.

THREAD 1/14

The idea for ZULU (1964) came when Cy Endfield picked up a copy of Lilliput. John Prebble's article "Slaughter in the Sun" became #Zulu a few years later - recounting an underdog action which yielded 11 VCs and launched the career of a cinema great along the way.

THREAD 2/14

ZULU DAWN (1979) sought to cash in on the success of its predecessor by depicting the Battle of #Isandlwana. Some big names make up a strong ensemble cast, share the story of two more VCs (Melvill and Coghill), and put the events at #RorkesDrift into wider context.

THREAD 3/14

Context is key too in THE DAM BUSTERS (1955), depicting the last in a series of operations that would win Guy Gibson the #VictoriaCross.

As much about technical ingenuity and teamwork as individual valour, #Dambusters showcases the remarkable men of #617Squadron.

THREAD 4/14

Playing a small part in a much bigger story is the raid which earned Geoffrey Keyes a posthumous VC. THE DESERT FOX (1951) names neither Operation Flipper nor the commando commander of its opening engagement as Holywood does its bit to push the #Rommel myth.

THREAD 5/14

John Baskeyfield gets full billing in the independently made short BASKEYFIELD VC (1969). Filmed over three years, Bill Townley accurately depicts the determination of a brave NCO during the Battle of Arnhem.

THREAD 6/14

Not all VC winners are so unambiguously depicted. Staying in Arnhem, the epic A BRIDGE TOO FAR (1977) gives us Major Carlyle. Presented as an umbrella wielding eccentric, he is an amalgamation of two real officers - Digby Tatham-Warter and VC winner, John Grayburn.

THREAD 8/14

THE GIFT HORSE (1952) goes further. It gives HMS Campbeltown a new name and replaces skipper Stephen Beattie with Trevor Howard's Fraser. While the scriptwriters enjoyed licence with their fictitious crew, the events that won Beattie his VC at St Nazaire remain.

THREAD 9/14

Donald Cameron is another naval VC who'd be forgiven for not recognising himself on screen. John Mills' ABOVE US THE WAVES (1955) and James Caan's SUBMARINE X-1 (1968) loosely use his operation as their source material.

THREAD 9/14

Fictional VC portrayals give filmmakers liberty to explore different issues. In RYAN'S DAUGHTER (1970), David Lean uses the shell-shocked Maj Doryan VC to remind viewers that medal winners are human and that conspicuous gallantry takes place amid the horrors of war.

THREAD 10/14

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP (1943) gives a depiction of the way a VC and the unwanted "celebrity" it can bring can change people's expectations and attitudes - "You're Candy!" exclaims an otherwise dismissive officer upon seeing the medal.

THREAD 11/14

Reverence, honour, and even jealousy are all responses explored in CARRINGTON VC (1954), a court room drama in which - in keeping with theatrical tradition that fake decorations should not be worn - David Niven is seen wearing the VC won by Arthur Cross in 1918.

THREAD 12/14

Perhaps surprisingly, given the drama involved with winning a Victoria Cross, cinema isn't awash with depictions.

Maybe there's a degree of reverence towards those who have shown gallantry of the highest order - something picked up in CONDUCT UNBECOMING (1975)

THREAD 13/14

Perhaps, though it's that those who win the VC are often "ordinary" men, with otherwise uncinematic lives, but who have shown the capacity for extraordinary valour.

At least one - Daniel Laidlaw VC - got the chance show why he wasn't ordinary in THE GUNS OF LOOS (1928).

THREAD

Interested in #Zulu? Well worth having a listen to @almurray and @James1940 share some thoughts on @WeHaveWaysPod

#WeHaveWays #WNTL

open.spotify.com/episode/3edFxB…

Want to know more about Baskeyfield VC? Don't miss @RM_Mili_History and @historicfirearm on @FightingOnFilm #FOF

open.spotify.com/episode/4vfpU0…