hiya bucks in Bourne End, Flackwell Heath, Marlow, Wycombe, Wooburn October 2014 | Page 24

Flare
Path

The brave young bomber crews of the Second World War
have been eulogised in many ways, including probably
the best-known and much-loved films ‘Reach for the Sky’,
about the life of Douglas Bader, and The Dambusters.
The stage has also seen many plays about the lives of
those who fought in WW2 and one of these is ‘Flare
Path’ by Terence Rattigan, written in 1941 and based on
Rattigan’s own experiences as a tail gunner.

Will Patricia choose her brave pilot husband
or her old lover, a fading matinee idol?
Will the Count survive the next raid?
Will Maudie get her husband back?
These are just some of the questions in Rattigan’s
profoundly moving yet funny play.

It is autumn of 1941. In the Falcon Hotel, RAF pilots and crew relax between
bombing raids on Germany. With them, their wives share a brief moment of
companionship and peace. A place where lips are worn stiff, where beer and banter
relieve the tension.
Rattigan has written a wonderful play which beautifully captures the forties’ small talk
and the deeper emotions that lie beneath.
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