Tawny Pipit (1944)

Jimmy Bancroft, a fighter pilot, who is recovering from injuries sustained during the Battle of Britain, and his nurse Hazel Broome, come across a pair of rare birds nestling in a field. ... See full summary »

Directors:

Bernard Miles, Charles Saunders

Writers:

Bernard Miles, Charles Saunders

Stars:

Bernard Miles, Rosamund John, Niall MacGinnis

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bernard Miles	...	Colonel Barton-Barrington
Rosamund John	...	Hazel Broome
Niall MacGinnis	...	Jimmy Bancroft
Jean Gillie	...	Nancy Forester
Lucie Mannheim	...	Russian Sniper
Christopher Steele	...	Reverend Kingsley
Brefni O'Rorke	...	Uncle Arthur
George Carney	...	Whimbrel
Wylie Watson	...	Crasker
Lyonel Watts	...	Silver
Scott Harold	...	Shuttleworth
Arthur Burne	...	Hambling
Billy Bridget	...	Alec
Jackie Christie	...	Ernie
John Salew	...	Pickering

Storyline

Jimmy Bancroft, a fighter pilot, who is recovering from injuries sustained during the Battle of Britain, and his nurse Hazel Broome, come across a pair of rare birds nestling in a field. After a run in with the army, and a couple of thieves, they, with the cooperation of the village people and the Ornithology Society, help the eggs to hatch. A wonderful look at life in a small village, during World War II.

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Plot Keywords:

pilot | world war two

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 October 1947 (USA)

Also Known As:

Poema da Paz

Filming Locations:

Lower Slaughter, Eastleach, Gloucestershire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Two Cities Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The birds in the film aren't actually Tawny Pipits, they are Meadow Pipits. Tawny Pipits are very rare in the UK (even more so in wartime when this film was made) and it wasn't possible to find any to film. The rarity of the Tawny Pipit is a major thread to the story. It was decided to photograph a pair of ordinary meadow pipits and keep to shots which showed the back view only; the tawny has a plain breast and the meadow a speckled one, but their back plumage is very similar.

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Connections

Featured in Watching the Russians (2007)

User Reviews

But it's not actually a tawny pipit !

The film was largely shot in Lower Slaughter and is a fascinating historical record of the Cotswolds during WW2. Today Lower Slaughter is a much visited village; the buildings are largely unchanged and the mill wheel still turns, if only for show. In "An eye for a Bird" 1970 Eric Hosking, who was the ornithological advisor for the film wrote : "It was decided that it was quite impossible to contemplate filming an actual tawny pipit; it nests mainly on the Continent where the war was raging. It was decided to photograph a pair of ordinary meadow pipits and keep to shots which showed the back view only; the tawny has a plain breast and the meadow a speckled one, but their back plumage is very similar."