PIECE OF CAKE - 6 PART R.A.F SERIES - 1988

Stories of the men of the RAF Hornet Squadron during the early days of World War II.

The lives and loves of the men of RAF Hornet Squadron who are transferred to France
at the outbreak of World Wat II in September 1939. For the most part the men are
competent fliers but there is little action in the first several months. The men
wile away their time with some engaging in dangerous stunts while others woo some
of the local lasses. The phony war comes to an end in April 1940 and the Battle of
Britain begins. By September that year, few of them are left and despite their success,
few see themselves as heroes.

S1, Ep1

2 Oct. 1988 September 1939

At the start of WWII, eager-beaver RAF squadron Hornet gloats over their kills until
they learn they actually shot down British fliers. The squad is transferred to France
and acquires an American pilot.


S1, Ep2

9 Oct. 1988 October 1939

Squadron bully Moggy is the first to fly under the local bridge, leading others to
try as well.


S1, Ep3

16 Oct. 1988 December 1939

By December 1939, Hornet Squadron finally see some action when they spot a lone German
bomber trying to get home. They shoot it down and subsequently visit the crash site and
see firsthand the deaths they have caused. Chris Hart thinks they were just lucky and
that their guns need to be re-sighted but Rex has taken a dislike to him and wants him out.
They get their first real test however when they come across three bombers with a fighter
escort. Not all of them survive the encounter. Flash develops his relationships with his
new girlfriend Nicole. Fitz is having some...


S1, Ep4

23 Oct. 1988 March 1940

It's March 1940 and the squadron loses another pilot, Treveylian, who has just arrived.
Hart challenges Rex's tactics of flying tight formations and feels its what brought
Treveylian down. Flash and Nicole decide to get married and Fitz asks Mary to marry him
and they have a double wedding. The reception is interrupted when the château is bombed.
The Nazi invasion of France has started in earnest and Rex is wounded. Despite being on
pain killers, Rex insists on leading his men on patrol, with deadly results. Mary and
Nicole are on their way to the British Embassy in ...


S1, Ep5

30 Oct. 1988 May 1940

With the German invasion in full swing, Hornet squadron is down to four aircraft. After
one of several sorties, they lose two of them. Air Commodore Bletchley tells them there
are no new aircraft available and what's left of the the squadron is to be relocated to
England. It's left to 'Uncle' Kellaway to tell Flash what's happened to Nicole. Once in
England, the men get a bit of leave. For his part, Flash has stayed at the airfield,
drinking too much and generally giving up on life. The German air offensive continues
through the summer with new recruits being killed ...


S1, Ep6

6 Nov. 1988 August 1940

Now relocated to England, Hornet Squadron is involved in defending England from what are
now daily Luftwaffe bombing raids. Only a few of the original pilots are still alive. When
Fitz is listed as missing in action, his wife Mary takes to parking her car near the airfield
in the hopes he will return. Seeing her there is starting to affect the men's morale. On
September 7, 1940 the Germans launched their largest ever attack. The men of Hornet Squadron
perform brilliantly on what is now considered to be the turning point in the Battle of Britain. The cost is high ...


Cast


Neil Dudgeon ... 'Moggy' Cattermole (6 episodes, 1988)
George Anton ... 'Pip' Patterson (6 episodes, 1988)
Boyd Gaines ... Chris Hart (6 episodes, 1988)
Jeremy Northam ... 'Fitz' Fitzgerald (6 episodes, 1988)
Nathaniel Parker ... 'Flash' Gordon (6 episodes, 1988)
David Horovitch ... 'Uncle' Kellaway (6 episodes, 1988)
Richard Hope ... 'Skull' Skelton (6 episodes, 1988)
Michael Elwyn ... Air Commodore Bletchley (6 episodes, 1988)
Tom Burlinson ... 'Fanny' Barton (5 episodes, 1988)
Gerard O'Hare ... 'Flip' Moran (5 episodes, 1988)
Tim Woodward ... 'Squadron Leader Rex (4 episodes, 1988)
Patrick Bailey ... 'Mother' Cox (4 episodes, 1988)
Gordon Lovitt ... 'Sticky' Stickwell (4 episodes, 1988)
Helena Michell ... Mary (4 episodes, 1988)
Stephen MacKenna ... 'Micky' Marriott (3 episodes, 1988)
John Bleasdale ... L.A.C. Gullett (3 episodes, 1988)
Corinne Dacla ... Nicole (3 episodes, 1988)
Tom Radcliffe ... 'Dicky' Starr (2 episodes, 1988)
Julian Gartside ... 'Amanda' Steele-Stebbing (2 episodes, 1988)
Mark Womack ... 'Moke' Miller (2 episodes, 1988)
Tomasz Borkowy ... 'Zaddy' Zardarnowski (2 episodes, 1988)
Jason Calder ... Pilot Officer Trevelyan (2 episodes, 1988)
Ned Vukovic ... 'Haddy' Haducek (2 episodes, 1988)
Simon Adams ... 'Bing' MacFarlane (2 episodes, 1988)
Richard Hague ... Corporal (2 episodes, 1988)
Daniel André Pageon ... Henri (2 episodes, 1988)