At last, the whole story

On Wednesday 31 July 1940, Hitler authorised an allout attack on Britain. The stage was set for the biggest air battle in history. 2500 aircraft flying against the 650 fighters of the RAF.

This documentary looks at the giant clash between two nations, examining how both countries used their resources during the Battle of Britain: from aircraft to air defence, and from intelligence to organisation. As well as gaining analytical insight from veteran British fighter pilots, presenter James Holland travels to Germany where he meets some of the few surviving Battle of Britain Luftwaffe Aces and gains access to diaries offering further striking, firsthand testimony from those who fought in the battle.

He also uncovers transcripts of unmediated conversations between captured German airmen, secretly recorded by Air Intelligence at Trent Park, North London, in 1940, and finally resolves a debate which has raged for seven decades: which was the better fighter plane of the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire Mk1 or the Messerschmitt 109E?

Arguing that the battle should be seen as starting much earlier, in May 1940, Holland charts the shift in power between the two countries across a crucial five-month period. By examining the events of that summer from both sides, and through a longer timeframe, Holland gets closer to understanding the real story of the Battle of Britain.

Written and presented by
James Holland
Producer/Director
Aaron Young
Executive Producers
Kevin Sim
Rebecca Dobbs
A Maya Vision International production for BBC

DURATION
1 x 50