COI VOLUME 3: THEY STAND READY (ARMED FORCES) - DVD

THE COI COLLECTION VOLUME THREE
THEY STAND READY

Established in 1946, the Central Office of Information (COI) was a successor to the wartime Ministry of Information and was responsible for producing thousands of films which celebrated Britain, its people and their achievements.

The third volume in the COI Collection looks at Britain's Armed Forces. To help paint a positive picture of life in the Services, the COI produced morale-boosting documentaries, propaganda items and numerous recruitment films, which placed emphasis on escaping the humdrum of daily life. Join the Services, we are told, and a world of opportunity awaits you.

Highlights include: Victory Parade (1946), in which troops from all over the British Empire arrive in London to celebrate victory over the Nazis; They Stand Ready (1955), a look at the vital role of National Service; Suez in Perspective (1957), where the Suez Crisis is given a positive spin; Routine Adventure (1965), about the RAF s role in Aden; When You Wake Up (1974), a recruitment film for schoolgirls which attempts to lure them in to the Woman's Royal Army Corp (WRAC); and HMS Sheffield (1975) and Tornado (1985), big boys toys on the high seas and in the skies.

Special features

• Egypt Today: The Anglo-French Aggression Against Egypt (1956, 11 mins): a very different story is told in this Egyptian response to British Suez propaganda
• Fully illustrated booklet including comprehensive contextualising notes and essays
• Dolby Digital mono audio (320kbps)

UK | 1946-1985 | black & white and colour | English, with optional hard-of-hearing subtitles | 264 minutes | DVD9 x 2 | Original aspect ratio 1.33:1 | Region 0 PAL DVD