IS IT BOLLOCKS?

Film Buff investigates the facts behind outlandish movie plots.

Did Winston Churchill really go on the Tube?

This Month Churchill’s Tube Jaunt

qIn Darkest Hour, PM Winston bolts from his car on the way to Parliament to pop down the Underground and canvas ordinary folk on appeasement. Historically accurate or poppycock?

aRICHARD LANDWORTH, CBE, AUTHOR OF WINSTON CHURCHILL, MYTH AND REALITY Churchill didn’t use the Underground – his daughter, Lady Soames, told me he only used it once and became so lost that he had to be rescued! But he was totally fearless, and left his car often throughout the Blitz to walk about. Likewise, he constantly tried to get near the fighting on visits to the front, and climbed to Ministry rooftops to observe bombers. The problem with the scene (and the scene where the King tells Churchill to ask the people if he should fight on) is not the dramatic licence, which one expects. The problem is that it misrepresents Churchill’s character and resolution. Of course he had doubts about the outcome – who would not? – but he never doubted the right course for Britain. Later he said, “It was the nation and race dwelling round the globe that had the lion heart. I had the luck to be called upon to give the roar.” But it was he who inspired them. I think this scene tries to convey that he took his cue from the public – particularly when touring Blitz damage – and shows his fearlessness.

Verdict not totally bollocks

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