This film is part of Free

Fire of London

This British propaganda film, made in 1945 for newly liberated countries in Europe, takes a positive view of British resilience during the Blitz.

Government sponsored film 1945 16 mins

From the collection of:

Logo for Imperial War Museums

Overview

Filmed by the Army Film Unit, the National Fire Service and newsreel cameramen, the ‘Fire of London’ is a retelling of how relentlessly the fires burned in London, and other British towns and cities, during the Blitz. It pays tribute to members of the home services, who endured nightly raids and disruption to their daily lives to save what they could.

Originally made in sixteen different languages for liberated Europeans, the film’s defiant propaganda message serves to remind the audience of how the ‘Blitz spirit’ eventually prevailed.