Channel 4 Acquires Big Little Fish's ‘Sir David Jason: The Lancaster at 80’

(London – October 13th, 2021) Big Little Fish TV, the unscripted production company led by Mark Procter and Steve Jones, today announces the acquisition by Channel 4 of a new documentary special celebrating one of the most iconic aircraft in history - the AVRO Lancaster.

Narrated by the legendary actor, aviation enthusiast and Honorary Vice Patron of The Royal International Air Tattoo ‘Sir David Jason: The Lancaster at 80’ (1 x 60’) documents how, following heavy losses for RAF Bomber Command squadrons in the early stages of the second world war, AVRO chief designer Roy Chadwick was tasked with creating an aircraft that could not only boost the resolve of aircrews but also enable allied forces to take the war to Hitler’s Germany.

The film features key contributions from historians Alexandra Churchill, Dr Peter Johnson, James Holland, authors Leo McKinstry (‘Lancaster’) and Mark Johnson (‘Pilots of the Caribbean’), military history enthusiast Arthur Williams and veteran Lancaster crew-members.

Steve Jones, Co-Founder and CEO at Big Little Fish said: “The Lancaster is so iconic, with such an incredible story, so in the year it turns 80 years old, we really wanted to celebrate it. As an engineering feat, key to the defeat of Nazi Germany, it became a legend - but as one of the first weapons of mass destruction it also has a dark side that makes it all the more fascinating.”

Naomi Rose, Channel 4’s Assistant Editor, “This is a fascinating exploration into one of Britain’s most famous aircraft, told through a brilliant combination of historians and ex Lancaster crew members. The film is a celebration of the Lancaster’s complex engineering and the men and women who built it.  We also take a look at some of the Lancaster’s darker history like Dresden, and the horrifying result of these sometimes-devastating weapons."