Gift Horse

A new restoration of the classic war film and part of the Vintage Classics range.In 1940, the Royal Navy is frantically recruiting for WWII so pulls Lieutenant Commander Fraser out of retirement to captain the HMS Ballantrae, herself recently re-commissioned and lent by the Americans to a seriously under-resourced British Navy.Despite an inauspicious start and multiple repairs, Fraser crafts the ship and its crew into an efficient fighting force, culminating in a daring mission to destroy a French dockyard which is crucial to the Nazis in maintaining their formidable battleships.The climax of the film is a fictional account of the real-life St Nazaire Raid of 1942 AKA Operation Chariot – led by a ship very similar to the Gift Horse itself, and celebrated as The Greatest Raid of All.Starring Trevor Howard, Richard Attenborough, Sonny Tufts, James Donald, Bernard Lee, Dora Bryan, Hugh Williams, Meredith Edwards and Sid James.Directed by Compton Bennett.Operation Chariot and HMS Campbeltown: James Dorrian Remembers the Real Gift HorseCeremony Commemorating 5 Year Anniversary of the St Nazaire Raid (1947)Behind the Scenes Stills GalleryOriginal Trailer