Guy Martin's Spitfire

Yep, he's back. And this time he helps loads of chaps from Duxford rebuild a crashed Mk1 spitfire. Some really interesting stuff in the programme, just a shame it wasn't a bit longer.

Just in car anyone missed it on C4 the other day you can still see it on 4OD.

I couldnt fathom out just exactly how much of the original aircraft exists in this new creation....... the explanation was vague to say the least.

I expect looking at the state of the excavation that maybe only the serial number plate was reused ?.

Anyone got any idea?. Or is it really a 'new' one ???

A good program though, I enjoyed watching it.

I got the impression it was ending up a bit like triggers road brush.

I didn't like the meticulous way it was put back together. I'm not complaining about the workmanship or anything like that. I would guess that during war time, it would have been more get that thing built and out the door.

I think health and safety has changed and is a little more important. The programme also opened by saying it must be built to original specs with original techniques and that some parts were refurbished. Although it never said where these parts were from.

The recovered airframe was totally shot, it could never have been integrated into a flying aircraft.

Great program, great project and interesting. It could have been a 2 parter i suppose but that would be loads of blokes convincing their wives that x factor is shite 2 weeks in a row!

I thought it was long enough. It was more about following the original plans and building a replica than the particular plane, highlighting the skills and work rate of the factories in wartime conditions. Having the original plane was a way of telling the story.
Good telly, but not GM's best.

Dont have this problem luckily

Enjoyed the programme, but have no idea what Guy Martin was doing there. His input, given the amount of effort put into the thing was minimal. He seemed to grind a pin, rivet a bit of a tank, and say "fair play" a lot.

I know what you mean, Steve. He seemed to be along for the ride, rather than really engaged in the project. In his autobiography, he says the only thing he has really connected with in his TV work was the repair job on the Llandudno pier; he said it combined danger with utility and graft (in so many words).
I'm quite surprised to see him doing more telly to be honest. He really didn't like it much in the book.

I thought it was great. I am not a bit fan of GM but he was ok in this. I thought it could have been a 3 parter. For example the heart of the plane - the merlin - was just sent away for a refurb. It would have been great to see it stripped down and rebuilt. There's one episode !

Yep I though the same.

I rather like Guy Martin - sort of modern-day Fred Dibnah

However, by the end of the Spitfire documentary, I was getting a little peeved with his near-constant repetition, I say, repetition....

Makes me think that some over-paid TV exec has decided that "Northern" is trendy and demanded that Guy over-do it a bit

He's always done that Nigel, for as long as he's been on TV. Irritating at times, yes, but I suspect not contrived. I'd like to think he's his own man to the extent that he doesn't take that much direction from the TV companies, at least not in how he presents his own persona.

According to his book, Guy Martin is Aspergic, which is what makes him unlike a lot of polished TV personalities. I recommend reading it as it is not your usual spin. The reason I didn't like the Spitfire show as much as others is that I felt it had been cut and manipulated rather than allowing the project to speak for itself. It made GM appear a bit of a caricature of himself, which is unnecessary.

I have his book - (signed copy ) - not started reading it yet. On Jim's recommendation above, I might give it a go, as I like biographies / autobiographies that are a bit different to the usual stuff (also have the very weighty "Shunt" to get into, but I fear that will be rather more predictable)

If his repetition is a genuine facet of his personality, I can certainly forgive it. Its just SO archetypal "northern" that I thought it might be exaggerated for the cameras

To be honest, I was only given the book as a joke by MrsC, mocking my "man-crush"!
I'm not usually one for celeb biographies and was pleasantly surprised. He seems quite straighforward, sometimes to the point of rudeness (possibly partly to do with his - officially undiagnosed - autism), which mainly manifests in an acute dislike of large groups of people. He is very much a loner.

Give it a go, Nigel, it's not amazing, but a decent read.

I've read GM's book and watched him ride for many years, he's alright as what you see is what you get which also comes across with his biography.

As for the program, yes very good, just too short.

Exatly. Like Fred Dibnah, he is not a "professional northener" by choice, he just is who he is.

Very much so, he's replaced Fred in many ways, including traction engines for motorcycles

Anything that mad me chuckle about him was his interview on Radio 2 a few months ago, he was talking with Hammond about his book and it's title, which was originally going to be 'When you're dead, you're dead!'

The marketing guys didn't think that was such a good idea, I wonder why not

Unfortunately when I read that term, the first thing that sprung to mind was this:



Sorry!

Indeed. And I thought of Asparagus, with a touch of asbestos for good measure.

Indeed. Mr Martin has been preserved in Aspergic for future generations! Spot on!

That looks proper good that does

I like him,anyone that roadraces a bike has my respect. Big balls.
I only saw the last hour of the spitfire show and i enjoyed the effort put into making that plane.

Imagine the wartime production line though! Wow sure is food for thought.

I agree - particularly had respect for the lady that said she worked 12 hours a day Mon-Fri, then eleven hours on Saturday, AND eight hours on Sunday, but they allowed them a whole week's holiday in the summer - said she loved every minute.....


Different type of person back then, although I can only imagine how much patriotic passion was brought about by the threat of a German invasion - everyone trying to "do their bit"

It was interesting that they had Geoffrey Wellum on the programme. His book, First Light is a wonderful account of the life of a pilot in World War II.

It must have been pretty exhausting work. Weren't ALL the rivets hammered in by hand?

Not sure if they were all done by hand, I do recall the Spit used countersunk flush rivets which is more labour intensive than the dome heads used on other planes of that era.
It was additions like these rivets that gave the Spit an increase in speed, they even glued split peas to the wings and fuselage to see where the flush head rivets gave and increase in performance.

But it only used countersunk rivets where they were on their own. Where you had a fore-aft line of rivets, they used round-headed ones... again, research from the same split pea experiment.