World War II · Film · 1942
In Which We Serve
Clinging to a life raft off Crete, the survivors of the destroyer HMS Torrin remember the ship's short war and the families they left behind in Plymouth.
Where it happened
Follow the story across 7 places.
Stop 1: Plymouth
Captain Kinross rushes the new destroyer into commission as war approaches, while the crew's wives and sweethearts wait ashore.
Stop 2: Home Fleet anchorage, north of Scotland
The ship spends a quiet Christmas of the Phoney War at anchor in the far north.
Stop 3: Off Narvik, Norway
In her first action off Norway, the Torrin is hit by a torpedo and towed home under attack from dive bombers.
Stop 4: Dunkirk
Repaired, the destroyer shuttles exhausted soldiers of the army home from the beaches.
Stop 5: Plymouth Blitz
At sea, a young sailor receives news from home of a birth and of the bombs that fell on his family's street.
Stop 6: Off Crete
Key location
After a night action against German transports, the Torrin is caught by dive bombers at dawn and her crew ends up in the water.
Stop 7: Alexandria
In a naval depot, Kinross says goodbye to the survivors one by one.
What really happened
Noël Coward based the story on HMS Kelly, the destroyer commanded by his friend Lord Louis Mountbatten, which was damaged in the North Sea in 1940 and sunk by German dive bombers during the Battle of Crete on 23 May 1941. Like the Torrin, the Kelly's survivors were strafed in the water and landed at Alexandria.
Made in 1942 with the Ministry of Information's support, the film was co-directed by Coward and the editor David Lean in his first directing credit. It weaves the ship's service at Narvik and Dunkirk with the home front, including the Plymouth Blitz of spring 1941, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Where to watch
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Full details
- Original title
- In Which We Serve
- Directed by
- Noël Coward, David Lean
- Countries
- United Kingdom
- Languages
- English
- Released
- 1942
- Period
- –
- Theaters of war
- Atlantic & Arctic, Mediterranean & Africa
- Themes
- Naval
- Home front
