CAPTAIN WALKER'S 2ND ESCORT GROUP [Allocated Title]

Scenes onboard one of the ships of the 2nd Escort Group, U-boat hunting in the Atlantic.

Reel One. The ships prepare to leave their anchorage. HA to hedgehog behind B gun on a Black Swan Class sloop as the cameraship HMS Wren slowly passes. Cameraship steams left to right across the bows of a depot ship which has HMS Magpie (U.82) alongside. Camera - now in small boat - closes on HMS Wren (U.28). Sloops leave port in company with HMS Tracker - a Martlet is parked aft on the carrier and a boat tows astern. Sequence showing church service led by ASCO Lieutenant Roberts onboard Wren. Scenes on the bridge - the Captain, Lieutenant-Commander Woods RNR, and his First Lieutenant, Lieutenant The Honourable Peter Van Eck take bearings, Lieutenant Roberts talks into his headset (he has difficulty in remaining straight-faced), Sub-Lieutenant Brown looks through binoculars, Navigating Officer Lieutenant Nichols (?) takes a reading with his sextant. CUs of Signalman Fred Rudkin with spotting binoculars and L/S J Gilligan (?) sending signal by searchlight. Sequence showing the transfer of a light message line between the cameraship and flagship HMS Starling (U.66) - the despatch is brought to the bridge to be read by the captain. HA onto crewmen relaxing over cups of tea and cigarettes - they then go to action stations, running aft to man the depth charges. CU as a man arms one of the Mk IV throwers - he raises his arm to indicate the weapon is ready. Other crewmen ready the stern rails. HA.LS aft from the bridge to crew at work during a depth charge run. HMS Starling and HMS Wild Goose (U.45) both fire patterns. Cameraship follows suit - depth charges explode astern of them. CU of a group of five U-boat survivors onboard the cameraship - they are under armed guard, but some manage a smile. The Germans are questioned by Lieutenant Van Eck in company with Lieutenant Taylor and CPO Richardson. The prisoners fill-in personal details on forms provided by their captors - while writing they rest the pads on each others backs. Reel Two. A scene in Wren's wardroom as the captain and his officers relax over grog - those present include Lieutenants Van Eck, Nichols, Roberts and Surgeon-Lieutenant Canti - the conviviality is a little self-conscious. Later in the sequence the group is joined by the War Correspondent Jack Cotter (?) who also takes a drink and makes a toast. Cut to sequence showing HMS Gore (K.481) in storm conditions - all of the frigate's bows and a good length of the hull comes clear of the surface. Night firing sequence with snowflake and 20mm tracer - light from the flare catches the crests of the waves and some of the tracer ricochets off the sea - the forward 4-inch guns join in momentarily, highlighting the Oerlikon crew, and there are occasional showers of glowing embers from the funnel. Cut to the cameraship alongside in harbour, disembarking the U-boat survivors - the last to leave is an officer. Cut again to an engine room scene, and CU of the engine room telegraph as the frigate works up to full speed. The scene then shifts to a HA.LS aft from the bridge down the port side - depth charges are dropped and explode astern. A second pattern is dropped, set to explode at greater depth. MS of HMS Starling keeping station on the cameraship's port quarter - she fires depth charges to port and starboard and drops more astern. Reel Three. MS off the port beam of HMS Wild Goose steaming slowly in long swell - beyond her is a second Black Swan. Crewmen prepare stern rails and ready-use depth charges - there is a twin Oerlikon mounting on the quarterdeck. Cut to sequence showing HMS Gore in dirty weather - the cameraship too is rolling badly in the heavy sea.

35mm