Flight of a Century

About this film

Engineering and cycling enthusiast Alliott Verdon-Roe dreamt of becoming the first Englishman to create and fly a powered aircraft. At first he went to Brooklands race track to carry out trials, since a prize had been offered for the first flight there. He lived in a shed, much of the time surviving on tinned fish. A trained engineer and cycling enthusiast, his flying machines were very much like kites, built with the benefit of cycling technology. Alliott Verdon-Roe financed his early experiments on 500 he raised by selling cycling prizes he had won, a significant sum at the time. But he was evicted from Brooklands by a track management who did not appear to be interested in powered flight.He found a railway arch on Walthamstow Marsh to use as a base to continue his experiments. It was close to the Tottenham base of JAP (J A Prestwich), the motor manufacturer whose engine powered his first flight. Although his money was exhausted he managed to continue thanks to the financial support of his brother Humphrey. At the age of 32 (in July 1909) he became the first Britain to fly an all British machine in Britain. It was the birth of one of the great names in British aviation (AVRO) and the start of the British aerospace industry.

Crew

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  Jonathan Brind
  Video artist