This film is part of Free

Goofer Trouble
Two daft 'goofers' cause trouble by staying outside while an air battle rages overhead in this punchy WWII public information film.
Overview
Two know-it-all 'goofers' – splendidly played by comedy stalwarts Fred Emney and Edward Chapman – stand outside while an air battle rages overhead, which prevents allied airmen above from using their machine guns for fear of hitting civilians. "Give us a break," one weary pilot entreats, "back us up – take shelter and don't give us any more goofer trouble".
Also featured in this short is David Farrar, leading man in Powell and Pressburger's Black Narcissus (1947). Here he plays an Intelligence Officer who wants to know how many aircraft have been shot down. This government film is a public record, preserved and presented by the BFI National Archive on behalf of The National Archives, home to more than 1,000 years of British history.
Related

Happy Family Happy Family
War 1939 9 mins
Summer 1939, and an ordinary family gets an alarming taste of war to come in this little-known Ealing Studios propaganda short.

Tim Marches Back Tim Marches Back
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1944 2 mins
A Peter Strausfeld animation, encouraging the public to use the telephone more sparingly in wartime.

Ships with Wings (Film Trailer) Ships with Wings (Film Trailer)
Promotional 1941 2 mins
A trailer for Ealing's wartime drama "Ships with Wings", an all-star actioner about the Navy's Fleet Air Arm.

The Man in Grey (Film Trailer) The Man in Grey (Film Trailer)
Promotional 1943 3 mins Silent
Gainsborough melodrama trailer, starring the most desirable cast of the period.

The Silent Village The Silent Village
War 1943 36 mins Location: Cwmgiedd
The villagers of Cwmgiedd re-enact a Nazi massacre in Czechoslovakia, in Humphrey Jennings’ unforgettable propaganda film.

Fear and Peter Brown Fear and Peter Brown
Documentary 1940 16 mins
Terror on the home front - literally - in this heady and eccentric brew.

On Falling - Exclusive Q&A On Falling - Exclusive Q&A
Inside Film 2025 30 mins
Writer-director Laura Carreira talks to Nia Childs about her debut feature, On Falling.

Layla - Exclusive Q&A Layla - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 27 mins
Writer, director and performer Amrou Al-Kadhi talks to Rico Johnson-Sinclair about their debut feature.

All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 28 mins
Payal Kapadia discusses her Cannes prize-winning and Bafta-nominated drama with Ashanti Omkar.

Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.

Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
Documentary 2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.

Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.