Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines

In 1910, in order to boost circulation of his newspaper, Lord Rawnsley offers £10,000 to the first person who can fly across the English Channel., (1965) For a brief period in the 60s, there was a fad for madcap movies such as It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World , Monte Carlo or Bust , The Great Race and Around the World in 80 Days , and Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines rightfully joins the list of those that worked. Newspaper publisher Lord Rawnsley (Robert Morley) puts up a £10,000 prize for the winner of a flight from London to Paris and soon his daughter Patricia (Sarah Miles), her would-be husband Richard (James Fox), his rival for her hand (Stuart Whitman) and a motley collection of aviators are gathered, ready for the race to begin. Among them, of course, is the requisite villain, Sir Percy Ware-Armitage (Terry-Thomas), aided by his put-upon servant Courtney (Eric Sykes). Although the gags are flagged, the cast are all game for the fun and respect should go to cinematographer Christopher Challis and the anonymous stuntmen who, for some of the scenes, had to fly planes that were only slightly more robust than the original pre-WWI craft they were modelled on., The prize offered by a London newspaper magnate attracts early daredevil flyers from all corners of the world. Among them are American Stuart Whitman , perfidious Brit Terry-Thomas, Frenchman Jean-Pierre Cassel and tip-top upright Englishman James Fox. The other attraction on offer for the competitors is Sarah Miles., A British newspaper publisher sponsors an air race from London to Paris in 1910. The contestants in the race come from all over the world, and the movie follows the pranks, loves, scams and rivalries of several of the pilots., For a brief period in the 60s, there was a fad for madcap movies such as It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World , Monte Carlo or Bust , The Great Race and Around the World in 80 Days , and Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines rightfully joins the list of those that worked. Newspaper publisher Lord Rawnsley puts up a £10,000 prize for the winner of a flight from London to Paris and soon his daughter Patricia, her would-be husband Richard, his rival for her hand and a motley collection of aviators are gathered, ready for the race to begin. Among them, of course, is the requisite villain, Sir Percy Ware-Armitage, aided by his put-upon servant Courtney. Although the gags are flagged, the cast are all game for the fun and respect should go to cinematographer Christopher Challis and the anonymous stuntmen who, for some of the scenes, had to fly planes that were only slightly more robust than the original pre-WWI craft they were modelled on., Set in 1910, this film is about a large air race between London and Paris, which is sponsored by a rich British newspaper publisher. The contestants in the race come from all over the world, and the movie follows the pranks, loves, scams, and rivalries of several of the pilots.