Voices of British Combat Cameramen of WWII

The combat cameramen of the British Army Film and Photographic Unit (AFPU) were responsible for recording most of the events and key historical figures of World War II. It is their material, often collected at great personal risk to themselves, which is most often used by film and television program makers today, however, little credit has ever been been afforded to the actual cameramen themselves. During research for his PhD at Lancaster University into the history of the British Army Film and Photographic Unit, the author had the pleasure to video interview some of the surviving members of the unit, many of whom went on to have long careers in the British Film Industry after their military service, some winning the industry's most awards. During the interviews they were encouraged to tell their own stories before, during and after their service in the AFPU. The stories of men such as Robert S. Baker, Peter Handford, Les Ostinelli, Desmond Davis and many more were recorded. It is incredible that given that these interviews were conducted almost sixty years after the events, the men's recollections were in the main amazingly sharp. Despite the difficulty of the passing of time, those who were interviewed provided remarkable stories of some remarkable men. These videos are the only video record in existence of these men and this book uses this exclusive source material to tell the fascinating stories of the heretofore overlooked men of the AFPU.