Where the Bullets Fly
Encyclopedia
Where the Bullets Fly is a 1966 British comedy spy film
directed by John Gilling
and starring Tom Adams
as Charles Vine and John Arnatt
repeating their roles from Licensed to Kill
/The Second Best Secret Agent in the Whole Wide World. It also features Dawn Addams
, Tim Barrett and Michael Ripper
.
Sid James
(as a mortician), Wilfred Brambell (as a train guard) and Joe Baker (as a new Labour Party Member of Parliament) have comedy cameo appearances.
sequence where a group of unnamed terrorists have parked a vehicle containing a guided missile
pointed straight at the Palace of Westminster
whilst politicians are heard on the film's soundtrack. They are thwarted by a group of older women in a tour group who turn out to be cross-dressing
commando
s who eliminate the terrorists with sub-machine guns and grenades. They are led by Agent Charles Vine with his second-in-command
being Lt. Guy Fawkes
who has saved the Parliament of England
.
The film proper begins with the Royal Air Force
testing a secret light-weight metal called "Spurium" that enables nuclear aircraft
to fly. An unnamed sinister organisation led by a man named Angel hijacks the DC-3 aircraft by hypnotising the RAF Regiment
guards and flying the plane to another location but they are shot down by the RAF.
Afraid the incident may happen again, Vine is assigned as security to the project. However Angel's organisation kidnap Vine and replace him with one of their own men named Seraph. Obtaining information before he escapes allows Seraph to steal a sample of Spurium to be sold to the Soviet Union; however the Russians believe he is double-crossing them and kills him.
Vine escapes and reports to the RAF airbase where he meets his RAF counterpart, Flight Lieutenant
Felicity "Fiz" Moonlight. Angel's men try an all out assault on the airfield to capture the next nuclear aircraft set to fly. Vine and Angel end up in the nuclear aircraft that takes flight but Vine is rescued by F/L Moonlight.
cooperated with the producers allowing several scenes to be filmed at RAF Biggin Hill
.
Different dialogue appeared in the American print that had much less of the opening Parliamentary satire and the word "Biggles
" is replaced by "Batman
" when Seraph is talking of his excitement in visiting Secret Service headquarters.
Spy film
The spy film genre deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way or as a basis for fantasy . Many novels in the spy fiction genre have been adapted as films, including works by John Buchan, John Le Carré, Ian Fleming and Len Deighton...
directed by John Gilling
John Gilling
John Gilling was an English film director and screenwriter, born in London. He was chiefly known for his horror films, especially for Hammer Films, for whom he directed Shadow of the Cat , The Plague of the Zombies , The Reptile and The Mummy's Shroud, among others...
and starring Tom Adams
Tom Adams (actor)
Tom Adams is an English actor with roles in horror and mystery films, and several TV shows.He starred as Charles Vine in Licensed to Kill and the sequels Where the Bullets Fly and Somebody's Stolen Our Russian Spy .His television credits include General...
as Charles Vine and John Arnatt
John Arnatt
- Biography :John Arnatt was born in Petrograd on 9 May 1917. His parents were Francis Arnatt and Ethel Marion Arnatt . He attended Epworth College. Arnatt trained for the stage at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
repeating their roles from Licensed to Kill
Licensed to Kill (1965 film)
Licensed to Kill is a 1965 superspy imitation James Bond film starring Tom Adams as British secret agent Charles Vine. It was directed and co-written by Lindsay Shonteff. Producer Joseph E...
/The Second Best Secret Agent in the Whole Wide World. It also features Dawn Addams
Dawn Addams
Dawn Addams was an English actress in motion pictures of the 1950s.-Life and career:She was born Victoria Dawn Addams in Felixstowe, Suffolk, England, the daughter of Ethel Mary and Captain James Ramage Addams. Her mother died when she was young, and she spent her early life in Calcutta, India...
, Tim Barrett and Michael Ripper
Michael Ripper
Michael Ripper was an English character actor born in Portsmouth.He began his film career in quota quickies in the 1930s and until the late 1950s was virtually unknown; he was seldom credited. He played one of the two murderers in Richard III. Ripper became a mainstay in Hammer Film Productions...
.
Sid James
Sid James
Sid James was an English-based South African actor and comedian. He made his name as Tony Hancock's co-star in Hancock's Half Hour and also starred in the popular Carry On films. He was known for his trademark "dirty laugh" and lascivious persona...
(as a mortician), Wilfred Brambell (as a train guard) and Joe Baker (as a new Labour Party Member of Parliament) have comedy cameo appearances.
Plot
The film begins with a pre-creditPre-credit
In film production, the pre-credit is the section of the film which is shown before the opening credits are shown.Many films will by common convention have a short scene before the credits to introduce characters who may, or may not, become crucial to the film's plot...
sequence where a group of unnamed terrorists have parked a vehicle containing a guided missile
Guided Missile
Guided Missile is a London based independent record label set up by Paul Kearney in 1994.Guided Missile has always focused on 'the underground', preferring to put out a steady flow of releases and developing the numerous GM events around London and beyond....
pointed straight at the Palace of Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
whilst politicians are heard on the film's soundtrack. They are thwarted by a group of older women in a tour group who turn out to be cross-dressing
Cross-dressing
Cross-dressing is the wearing of clothing and other accoutrement commonly associated with a gender within a particular society that is seen as different than the one usually presented by the dresser...
commando
Commando
In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...
s who eliminate the terrorists with sub-machine guns and grenades. They are led by Agent Charles Vine with his second-in-command
Second-in-command
The Second-in-Command is the deputy commander of any British Army or Royal Marines unit, from battalion or regiment downwards. He or she is thus the equivalent of an Executive Officer in the United States Army...
being Lt. Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes , also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish in the Low Countries, belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.Fawkes was born and educated in York...
who has saved the Parliament of England
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
.
The film proper begins with the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
testing a secret light-weight metal called "Spurium" that enables nuclear aircraft
Nuclear aircraft
A nuclear aircraft is an aircraft powered by nuclear energy. Research into them was pursued during the Cold War by the United States and the Soviet Union as they would presumably allow a country to keep nuclear bombers in the air for extremely long periods of time, a useful tactic for nuclear...
to fly. An unnamed sinister organisation led by a man named Angel hijacks the DC-3 aircraft by hypnotising the RAF Regiment
RAF Regiment
The Royal Air Force Regiment is a specialist airfield defence corps founded by Royal Warrant in 1942. After a 32 week trainee gunner course, its members are trained and equipped to prevent a successful enemy attack in the first instance; minimise the damage caused by a successful attack; and...
guards and flying the plane to another location but they are shot down by the RAF.
Afraid the incident may happen again, Vine is assigned as security to the project. However Angel's organisation kidnap Vine and replace him with one of their own men named Seraph. Obtaining information before he escapes allows Seraph to steal a sample of Spurium to be sold to the Soviet Union; however the Russians believe he is double-crossing them and kills him.
Vine escapes and reports to the RAF airbase where he meets his RAF counterpart, Flight Lieutenant
Flight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
Felicity "Fiz" Moonlight. Angel's men try an all out assault on the airfield to capture the next nuclear aircraft set to fly. Vine and Angel end up in the nuclear aircraft that takes flight but Vine is rescued by F/L Moonlight.
Cast
- Tom AdamsTom Adams (actor)Tom Adams is an English actor with roles in horror and mystery films, and several TV shows.He starred as Charles Vine in Licensed to Kill and the sequels Where the Bullets Fly and Somebody's Stolen Our Russian Spy .His television credits include General...
- Charles Vine - Dawn AddamsDawn AddamsDawn Addams was an English actress in motion pictures of the 1950s.-Life and career:She was born Victoria Dawn Addams in Felixstowe, Suffolk, England, the daughter of Ethel Mary and Captain James Ramage Addams. Her mother died when she was young, and she spent her early life in Calcutta, India...
- Flt Lt Felicity 'Fiz' Moonlight - Michael RipperMichael RipperMichael Ripper was an English character actor born in Portsmouth.He began his film career in quota quickies in the 1930s and until the late 1950s was virtually unknown; he was seldom credited. He played one of the two murderers in Richard III. Ripper became a mainstay in Hammer Film Productions...
- Angel - Tim Barrett - Seraph
- Sid JamesSid JamesSid James was an English-based South African actor and comedian. He made his name as Tony Hancock's co-star in Hancock's Half Hour and also starred in the popular Carry On films. He was known for his trademark "dirty laugh" and lascivious persona...
- Mortuary Attendant - Wilfrid BrambellWilfrid BrambellHenry Wilfrid Brambell was an Irish film and television actor best known for his role in the British television series Steptoe and Son. He also performed alongside The Beatles in their film A Hard Day's Night, playing Paul McCartney's fictional grandfather.- Early life :Brambell was born in Dublin...
- Train Guard - Joe Baker - Minister
- John ArnattJohn Arnatt- Biography :John Arnatt was born in Petrograd on 9 May 1917. His parents were Francis Arnatt and Ethel Marion Arnatt . He attended Epworth College. Arnatt trained for the stage at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
- Rockwell - Ronald Leigh-HuntRonald Leigh-HuntRonald Leigh-Hunt was a British film and television actor.His father was a stockbroker and he attended the Italia Conti Academy. He began acting whilst serving in the army...
- Thursby - Marcus HammondMarcus HammondMarcus Hammond is a British actor who was active in the sixties and seventies, playing the role of Antodus in the 1963 Doctor Who serial The Daleks, as well as a recurring roles in Z Cars as PC Taylor and in Kate as Stephen Graham....
- O'Neil - Tony Arpino - Butler
- Michael Balfour - Band Leader
- Tom Bowman - Russian Colonel
- Maurice BrowningMaurice BrowningMaurice Browning was a British television actor.He appeared in several cult television series, including The Avengers, The Saint, The Champions and Doctor Who....
- Cherub - Michael James Cox - Lt. Guy Fawkes
- Sue Donovan - Celia
- Peter Ducrow - Prof. Harding
- James EllisJames Ellis (actor)James Ellis is an actor from Northern Ireland with a television career of more than 45 years. He went to school at Methodist College Belfast and later studied at both Queen's University Belfast and the Bristol Old Vic....
- Flight Lt. Fotheringham - Heidi Erich - Carruthers
- Suzan FarmerSuzan FarmerSuzan Farmer is an English actress, mainly on television.She first appeared in an episode of the Patrick McGoohan series Danger Man entitled No Marks for Servility and went on to feature in many other ITC series in the 1960s and 70s including UFO, The Saint, Man in a Suitcase and The Persuaders!...
- Caron - Michael GoldieMichael GoldieMichael Goldie was a British Character actor active between 1963 and 1996.He starred in many TV roles including Coronation Street, Doctor Who, Wycliffe, Inspector Morse and Z-Cars. Probably his most watched role though was as Kenneth of Cowfell in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves....
- Laborer - David Gregory - R.A.F. Sergeant
- Gerard HeinzGerard HeinzGerard Heinz , born Gerhard Hinze, was an actor. He later moved to England, where he changed his name to Gerard Heinz. He appeared in almost 60 movies , and a number of stage productions...
- Venstram - John HorsleyJohn Horsley (actor)John L. Horsley is an English actor. He was born in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, England.He made his acting debut at the Theatre Royal in Bournemouth. His early career saw him playing a succession of doctors and policemen, the former on film in Hell Drivers , the latter on television in Big...
- Air Marshal - Charles Houston - Co-pilot
- Patrick JordanPatrick Jordan-Selected filmography:* Companions in Crime * No Smoking * The Battle of the River Plate * Cloak Without Dagger * The Man Upstairs * The Angry Hills * The League of Gentlemen...
- Russian
Production
The Royal Air ForceRoyal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
cooperated with the producers allowing several scenes to be filmed at RAF Biggin Hill
London Biggin Hill Airport
London Biggin Hill Airport is an airport at Biggin Hill in the London Borough of Bromley, located south southeast of Central London, United Kingdom...
.
Different dialogue appeared in the American print that had much less of the opening Parliamentary satire and the word "Biggles
Biggles
"Biggles" , a pilot and adventurer, is the title character and main hero of the Biggles series of youth-oriented adventure books written by W. E. Johns....
" is replaced by "Batman
Batman
Batman is a fictional character created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger. A comic book superhero, Batman first appeared in Detective Comics #27 , and since then has appeared primarily in publications by DC Comics...
" when Seraph is talking of his excitement in visiting Secret Service headquarters.