The First Of The Few (directed by Leslie Howard, 1942). Leslie Howard and David Niven star in a biopic of the life of Reginald Mitchell. Howard in the title role brings an emotional intensity to the part knowing that he is working not only against the Air Ministry's deadline but a terminal illness. There are a few aerial scenes, but otherwise the plot keeps its feet firmly on the ground. Read more about The First Of The Few here.

The Battle Of Britain (1943). This was an official US government propaganda film directed by Frank Capra. Plenty of archive footage of the leading political figures on all sides has been edited into action scenes of the war itself. Part of a larger series called Why We Fight, it aimed to boost the morale of its American audiences by emphasising the against-all-odds stand the British had made in 1940 to forestall Nazi invasion.

A Canterbury Tale (Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, 1944). Stars Eric Portman, Dennis Price and Sheila Sim. This haunting, symbolic film is a modern interpretation of the tales told by Chaucer's pilgrims, set in wartime. It begins with a shot of a hooded falcon on the wrist of a medieval pilgrim. The camera watches it fly up into the air, and all but disappear in the distance, when it turns and comes soaring back - as a Spitfire.

'Battle Of Britain' film poster, 1969
© United Artists / The Kobal Collection

The Way To The Stars (Anthony Asquith, 1945). Stars John Mills, Michael Redgrave and Trevor Howard. This film tells the story of a newly qualified pilot (Mills) who becomes disillusioned when his squadron commander is killed in a raid, leaving a grief-stricken wife behind. Having fallen for a local girl, Iris (Renée Asherson), he eventually comes to terms with his own survival. The plot moves from the early days of the Battle of Britain through to America's entry into the war, and is set at the airfield and in nearby communities. The film was generally highly regarded for its focus on the individual psychological effects of war, not just the big events. The plot is based on an idea by Terence Rattigan.

Angels One Five (George More O'Ferrall, 1953). Stars John Gregson, Jack Hawkins, Michael Denison and Cyril Raymond. Several years having elapsed since the end of the war, films such as this took on a grittier, more realistic and less propagandistic tone. The Battle of Britain is now shown as the nervy, uncertain affair it was in reality, with the story being told more from the point of view of the people on the ground, rather than the action in the air. The airfield scenes were shot on location at the disused RAF Kenley in Surrey and RAF Uxbridge in Middlesex.

Battle Of Britain (Guy Hamilton, 1969). Stars Laurence Olivier, Trevor Howard, Michael Caine, Kenneth More, Christopher Plummer, Michael Redgrave, Patrick Wymark, Ralph Richardson and Robert Shaw. Alec Guinness's part (as Lord Beaverbrook) was cut from the script shortly before filming began. This was intended to be the definitive, all-star, action-packed version of the events of 1940.

Twenty-seven Spitfires were brought together for the film, 12 of which were flyable, virtually all those that were available at the time.

From www.imdb.com: "Many mock-ups of Spitfires and Hurricanes were made in the months prior to filming. Some had lawnmower engines fitted and could be taxied around the airfield, but if they braked too hard they would flip up on to their noses. This happened several times in front of the cameras and some of the footage was eventually used in the film."

Eagle-eyed experts will notice that the Spitfires used in the film are not Mk Is and IIs, as they should be for historical accuracy, but Mk IXs and XIVs.

The airfield scenes were filmed at four RAF bomber bases, all of which were operational during the war: Duxford (in Cambridgeshire), Debden and North Weald (Essex), and Hawkinge (Kent).

Footage from this film was reused in a Czech blockbuster, Dark Blue World (2001), about two Czech pilots who fought with the RAF during the war. The action is based on a true story. After the war, the men returned to the then Czechoslovakia, which had become a member of the Soviet bloc. There, they were imprisoned for having allied themselves with the capitalist West.