The IWM Film Archive is the oldest film archive in the UK, holding over 20,000 hours of film, video and digital material and covering the two World Wars and all conflicts involving British or Commonwealth Forces since the start of the Twentieth Century to the present. Our collection also reflects aspects of civilian life in wartime, military life in peacetime, military exercises and operations.
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Commandos Return to Hastings After Raid on St Cecily Plage, Le Touquet 3/4 June 1942 'Operation Bristle'
Hastings pier, the old town and troops mustered along the beach are filmed from a low flying aircraft during the Second World War.
From the collection of:

Overview
Scenes over Hastings beach on the South Coast of England, as British Army Commandos return from a raid in Northern France. Filmed from a low flying Anson aircraft, the cameraman picks out a cluster of troops along the beach and aboard vessels further out to sea. The old town and pier stand, clearly bomb damaged, in the background.
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