Royal Tournament In The Open Air (1965)

Devonport in Devon, Debden in Essex and Aldershot in Hampshire. Pathe visits the army teams who are preparing their acts for the Royal Tournament. On a parade ground there are some trucks disguised as boats moving about. There is a mock battle with smoke and guns fired. The losers hold their hands up in surrender. Next, at Debden, we see a man creeping around an outbuilding as if he were an intruder. The handler releases the trained dog, who goes for the man. The intruder pulls a gun and the dog attacks him. There are shots of the dog and man wrestling on the grass and on top of a land rover. At Devonport, we see an emblem of Drake’s ship, and a large team of men in red shirts and baggy trousers perform their field gun race. The men shift men and equipment across a gap for a ’river’ using a pulley and wire. They construct the field gun on the far side, swinging themselves, large wheels and parts across the divide. It is a great demonstration of planning, teamwork, agility and co-ordination. At