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Castles in the Sky

  • 20142014
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 30m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
1.1K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • IMDbPro
Eddie Izzard, Alex Jennings, Tim McInnerny, and Julian Rhind-Tutt in Castles in the Sky (2014)
  • Biography
  • Drama
  • History
Eddie Izzard stars in this funny, moving and inspiring factual drama about the pioneering work on radar by a little known team of scientists in the run up to the Second World War.Eddie Izzard stars in this funny, moving and inspiring factual drama about the pioneering work on radar by a little known team of scientists in the run up to the Second World War.Eddie Izzard stars in this funny, moving and inspiring factual drama about the pioneering work on radar by a little known team of scientists in the run up to the Second World War.
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
1.1K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Gillies MacKinnon
  • Writer
    • Ian Kershaw
  • Stars
    • Eddie Izzard
    • Laura Fraser
    • Arran Tulloch
Top credits
  • Director
    • Gillies MacKinnon
  • Writer
    • Ian Kershaw
  • Stars
    • Eddie Izzard
    • Laura Fraser
    • Arran Tulloch
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 18User reviews
    • 9Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 nominations

    Photos8

    Castles in the Sky (2014)
    Eddie Izzard & Karl Davies in Castles In The Sky
    Joe Bone, Eddie Izzard, Celyn Jones, Iain Mckee & Karl Davies in Castles In The Sky
    Karl Davies & Eddie Izzard in Castles in The Sky
    Eddie Izzard and Iain McKee in Castles in the Sky (2014)
    Karl Davies, Celyn Jones, Iain McKee, and Joe Bone in Castles in the Sky (2014)
    Karl Davies, Eddie Izzard, Celyn Jones, Iain McKee, and Joe Bone in Castles in the Sky (2014)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Eddie Izzard
    Eddie Izzard
    • Robert Watson Wattas Robert Watson Watt
    Laura Fraser
    Laura Fraser
    • Margaret Watson Wattas Margaret Watson Watt
    Arran Tulloch
    • Patas Pat
    Lesley Harcourt
    Lesley Harcourt
    • Helen - Secretaryas Helen - Secretary
    Alex Jennings
    Alex Jennings
    • Henry Tizardas Henry Tizard
    David Hayman
    David Hayman
    • Frederick Lindemannas Frederick Lindemann
    Julian Rhind-Tutt
    Julian Rhind-Tutt
    • Albert Roweas Albert Rowe
    Karl Davies
    Karl Davies
    • Arnold 'Skip' Wilkinsas Arnold 'Skip' Wilkins
    Stephen Chance
    • Scientistas Scientist
    Carl Heap
    • Scientistas Scientist
    Celyn Jones
    Celyn Jones
    • Edward 'Taffy' Bowenas Edward 'Taffy' Bowen
    Iain McKee
    Iain McKee
    • Higgyas Higgy
    Joe Bone
    Joe Bone
    • Bainbridge Bellas Bainbridge Bell
    Nick Elliott
    • Navy Guardas Navy Guard
    Tim McInnerny
    Tim McInnerny
    • Winston Churchillas Winston Churchill
    Neal Stewart-Roxburgh
    • The 7th Boffinas The 7th Boffin
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Gillies MacKinnon
    • Writer
      • Ian Kershaw
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit
    It is the mid-1930s and the storm clouds of WWII are forming in Germany. This film charts the work of Robert Watson Watt, the pioneer of Radar, and his hand-picked team of eccentric yet brilliant meteorologists as they struggle to turn the concept of Radar into a workable reality. Hamstrung by a tiny budget, seemingly insurmountable technical problems and even a spy in the camp, Watson Watt also has to deal with marital problems as he chases his dream. By 1939, Watson Watt and his team have developed the world's first Radar system along the south east coast of England - a system that, in 1940, will prove pivotal in winning the Battle of Britain. —John
    • 1930s
    • world war two
    • radar
    • scientist
    • winston churchill
    • 1 more
    • Plot summary
    • Add synopsis
    • Genres
      • Biography
      • Drama
      • History
      • War
    • Certificate
      • Not Rated
    • Parents guide
      • Add content advisory

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Goofs
      The aircraft in the initial test is of the right era but the wrong type - it looks like a de Havilland Rapide, while it should be a Handley Page Heyford, something in which the film makers had little choice, since not a single example of a Heyford survives, flying or not.

    User reviews18

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Shows us how the Battle of Britain was won.....Before it was Fought!
    A local theatre has been showing little-known WW II films this month (August 2015) on the 70th anniversary of the end of that war, and this film on the British development of radar for the RAF prior to WW II was one of them. I'm interested in the historical development of technology plus I had seen a PBS Nova show several years ago on WW II's spur to radar's development, so I was interested in this BBC production. In addition, Ian Kershaw, a well-respected British historian, wrote the script. I was not disappointed; it was a very enjoyable film for me.

    I had also seen earlier this year "The Imitation Game" featuring Alan Turing and his team of British mathematicians and codebreakers at Bletchley Park, and the parallels with "Castles" are striking. Both films have groups of unconventional geniuses monitored by class-conscious representatives of Britain's ruling circles and sequestered in rural hideaways where they work under great pressure to help win the war ("Imitation") or prepare for war ("Castles"). Robert Watson Watt, played by Eddie Izzard, is the Alan Turing of "Castles", and although not as eccentric as Turing, is sufficiently unconventional to warrant suspicion and doubt by those in the British government in the late-30s who must trust him with their scarce resources. His idea is to use a series of radio beams: (1) of sufficient strength to echo off incoming objects, e.g., bombers, at a sufficient distance, (2) and of sufficient number to ascertain their direction. The senior officials want him to use the nation's top physicists from Oxford and Cambridge to assist him, but Watt is an engineer for the Meteorological Service and wants to use his fellow "weather engineers" who can think outside-the-box. He gets his way against the rigid class structure of pre-war Britain, and for my money the visible drama of demonstrating radar's efficacy in detecting planes from 60 miles out (as shown in "Castles") is more striking than the drama that unfolds in "Imitation" where the group is finally able to read a coded message. The end of "Castles" shows how well radar has been integrated into RAF's Fighter Command by taking us inside their command centers that are ready to scramble fighters at the first ping on the radarscope on the eve of the Battle of Britain (when the Luftwaffe had three times as many planes at the outset).

    Modern wars, for better or worse, are said to be won with economic production and technology, and it's thus gratifying to see little-known figures like Watt featured in a film like this. It's sad to compare, however, that Watt was rewarded with a knighthood in 1942 for his pre-war development of radar, while Turing, pledged to secrecy by the British government for his war-time codebreaking, was not honored during his lifetime and apparently committed suicide.
    helpful•7
    2
    • don2507
    • Aug 6, 2015

    FAQ1

    • Why was the expression "castles in the sky" chosen to be the title of this film/television production.

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • June 23, 2014 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • Hedderwick, Dunbar, East Lothian, Scotland, UK
    • Production companies
      • Hero Productions
      • Black Camel Pictures
      • The Open University
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 30 minutes
    • Color
      • Color

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