“Hurricane” (Squadron 303) a new Polish-British film about the fates of Polish fighters in the Battle of Britain will hit cinemas on the 17th of August.
One of the lead actors, “Game of Thrones” star Iwan Rheon talks about the film in an interview for Kino Świat. “It’s a negligence that British schools don’t teach about Polish participation in the Battle of Britain,” he said.
Rheon, who plays the role of Jan Zumbach, says that he knew that other nations had participated in the Battle of Britain on the side of the Royal Air Force (RAF). He had no idea, however, about how important their impact was. Especially how pivotal Polish assistance was to victory.
It’s a negligence that British schools don’t teach about Polish participation in the Battle of Britain
He argues that the British should be thankful to all of those people who came to Great Britain from abroad and helped them achieve their goal.
Rheon also fondly speaks about his time spent on set with Polish actors. “You always know what you’re doing, exactly like when the legends of the RAF were saving Europe!,” he said.
Milo Gibson, the son of Mel Gibson and another lead actor in “Hurricane”, comments that the Battle of Britain is taught in American schools. It is a part of the US high school curriculum, so the struggle of the RAF and Squadron 303 is well-known to Americans.
In the summer of 1940 around 150 Polish pilots fought in the Battle of Britain alongside the RAF against the German Luftwaffe. Together, they claimed 201 aircraft were shot down.
The 303 Polish fighter Squadron was the most famous, accounting for 126 of the kills. It was the highest number amongst the Hurricane squadrons. Squadron 303 also had the highest ratio of enemy aircraft destroyed to their own lost. Other nationalities fighting along with British included a Czech fighter squadron.
