''Above Us the Waves'' is a 1955 British

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that war fi ...

about human torpedo and

midget submarine A midget submarine (also called a mini submarine) is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, ...

attacks in Norwegian fjords against the German battleship ''Tirpitz''. Directed by

Ralph Thomas Ralph Philip Thomas Military Cross, MC (10 August 1915 – 17 March 2001) was an English film director. He is perhaps best remembered for directing the ''Doctor Series, Doctor'' series of films. His brother, Gerald Thomas, was also a film dire ...

, it is based on two true-life attacks by

British commando frogmen Britain's commando frogman force is now the Special Boat Service (SBS), whose members are drawn largely from the Royal Marines. They perform various operations on land as well as in the water. Until the late 1990s, all members of the Special Air ...

, first using

Chariot manned torpedo The Chariot was a British manned torpedo used in World War II. The Chariot was inspired by the operations of Italian naval commandos, in particular the raid on 19 December 1941 by members of the Decima Flottiglia MAS who rode "''Maiali"'' human to ...

es in

Operation Title Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

in 1942, and then X-Craft midget submarines in

Operation Source Operation Source was a series of attacks to neutralise the heavy German warships – ''Tirpitz'', ''Scharnhorst'' and ''Lützow'' – based in northern Norway, using X-class midget submarines. The attacks took place in September 1943 at Kaa ...

in 1943. Filmed at Pinewood Studios, England, with outdoor scenes in Guernsey, some of the original war equipment was used in the film.

Plot

The

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

(RN) is concerned about attacks on convoys by German

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

s while having to keep "half the fleet" guarding against the German battleship . ''Tirpitz'' is 60 miles from the sea inside a Norwegian fjord, and attempts by the Royal Air Force (RAF) to sink her have failed. Commander Fraser (Mills) is determined to prove that attack by human torpedoes is practical, despite scepticism from RN higher echelons. Fraser assembles and trains a force of

officers and ratings to use the Mk I Human Torpedo manned torpedoes (Chariots) at their Scottish base. After being refused permission to attack ''Tirpitz'', due to the RN policy of avoiding unproven weaponry, the team manage to attach dummy

limpet mine A limpet mine is a type of naval mine attached to a target by magnets. It is so named because of its superficial similarity to the shape of the limpet, a type of sea snail that clings tightly to rocks or other hard surfaces. A swimmer or diver m ...

s to the admiral's own ship. Their success results in Fraser's force being authorised to attack ''Tirpitz'' with the initial operation using the Chariots. The attack fails and the crew are forced to abandon ship and land in Norway. They walk to neutral Sweden from where they are returned to Scotland. For the next operation, the crews are trained to use small X-Craft submarines: ''X1'', ''X2'' and ''X3''. The three craft are initially towed over the North Sea by conventional submarines and then left to penetrate the fjord where ''Tirpitz'' is anchored. They manage to approach undetected to lay their "side-cargoes" under the ship's hull, each containing two tons of explosive

amatol Amatol is a highly explosive material made from a mixture of TNT and ammonium nitrate. The British name originates from the words ammonium and toluene (the precursor of TNT). Similar mixtures (one part dinitronaphthalene and seven parts ammoniu ...

. ''X2'' is badly damaged and cannot re-surface, but the crew decide to stay on board to prevent "giving the game away". The other two submarines succeed in laying their mines before the crews scuttle them. They are captured by the crew of ''Tirpitz'', to be taken away as

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

. While some German crew are aggressive, attempting to machine gun the men in the water, the captain of ''Tirpitz'' salutes them as "brave men", providing them blankets and schnapps. The mines explode as planned, badly damaging ''Tirpitz''. The crew of the stranded ''X2'', hearing the explosions, attempt to escape. However, ''X2''s side cargoes have flooded, which causes them to spontaneously explode, destroying ''X2'' and killing her crew.

Main cast

John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portray ...

as Commander Fraser *

John Gregson Harold Thomas Gregson (15 March 1919 – 8 January 1975), known professionally as John Gregson, was an English actor of stage, television and film, with 40 credited film roles. He was best known for his crime drama and comedy roles. He was cr ...

as Lieutenant Alec Duffy *

Donald Sinden Sir Donald Alfred Sinden (9 October 1923 – 12 September 2014) was a British actor. Sinden featured in the film ''Mogambo'' (1953), and achieved early fame as a Rank Organisation film star in the 1950s in films including ''The Cruel Sea (195 ...

as Lieutenant Tom Corbett *

James Robertson Justice James Robertson Justice (15 June 1907 – 2 July 1975) was a British actor. He is best remembered for portraying pompous authority figures in comedies including each of the seven films in the ''Doctor'' series. He also co-starred with Grego ...

as Admiral Ryder *

Michael Medwin Michael Hugh Medwin, OBE (18 July 1923 – 26 February 2020) was an English actor and film producer. Life and career Medwin was born in London. He was educated at Canford School, Dorset, and the Institute Fischer, Montreux, Switzerland. He ...

as Steward Smart *James Kenney as Abercrombie * O. E. Hasse as Captain of the Tirpitz *

Lee Patterson Lee Patterson (March 31, 1929 – February 14, 2007) was a Canadian film and television actor. Life and career Patterson was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, as Beverley Frank Atherly Patterson. He attended the Ontario College of Art and D ...

as Cox * William Russell as Ramsey *

Theodore Bikel Theodore Meir Bikel ( ; May 2, 1924 – July 21, 2015) was an Austrian-American actor, folk singer, musician, composer, unionist, and political activist. He appeared in films, including '' The African Queen'' (1951), ''Moulin Rouge'' (1952), ' ...

as German officer *

Harry Towb Harry Towb (27 July 1925 – 24 July 2009) was an actor from Northern Ireland. Early life and career Towb was born in Larne, County Antrim, to a History of the Jews in Russia, Russian-Jewish father and an History of the Jews in Ireland, Irish- ...

as McCleery *

Cyril Chamberlain Cyril Chamberlain (8 March 1909 – 5 December 1974) was an English film and television actor. He appeared in a number of the early ''Carry On'', ''Doctor'' and ''St. Trinian's'' films. Chamberlain was born on 8 March 1909 in London and died ...

as Chief Petty Officer Chubb *

Anthony Wager Anthony A. "Tony" Wager (24 June 1932 – 23 December 1990) was an English actor and television writer. Wager is best known for portraying the role of the young "Pip" in David Lean's 1946 film of '' Great Expectations''. Early life and career ...

as George *

Leslie Weston Leslie Weston (24 July 1896 – 13 October 1975) was a British actor who was also a radio and variety comedian. Selected filmography * ''Glamour Girl'' (1938) * '' They Drive by Night'' (1938) * ''Two for Danger'' (1940) * ''We Dive at Dawn' ...

as Winley *

Lyndon Brook Lyndon Brook (10 April 1926 – 9 January 2004) was a British actor, on film and television. Family and early life Lyndon Brook was born on 10 April 1926 in Los Angeles, California, to British parents. He came from an established acting fami ...

as Diver navigator, X2 *

Thomas Heathcote Thomas Heathcote (9 September 1917 – 5 January 1986) was a British character actor, a former protégé of Laurence Olivier. He was educated at Bradfield College in Bradfield, near Reading in Berkshire, England. His films included '' A Night ...

as Hutchins *

Anthony Newley Anthony Newley (24 September 1931 – 14 April 1999) was an English actor, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker. A "latter-day British Al Jolson", he achieved widespread success in song, and on stage and screen. "One of Broadway's greatest leading ...

as Engineer, X2 * John Horsley as Lieutenant Anderson

Royal Norwegian Navy The Royal Norwegian Navy ( no, Sjøforsvaret, , Sea defence) is the branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces responsible for naval operations of Norway. , the Royal Norwegian Navy consists of approximately 3,700 personnel (9,450 in mobilized state, 3 ...

William Franklyn William Leo Franklyn (22 September 1925 – 31 October 2006) was a British actor, perhaps best known for voicing the "Schhh... You Know Who" adverts for Schweppes from 1965 to 1973. He also performed on stage, film, television and radio, t ...

as No. 1, X2 *

Guido Lorraine Guido Lorraine (2 September 1912 – 31 December 2009) was a Polish-born actor, musician and singer, known primarily for his roles in war films. He was also sometimes known by the stage name Guy Borucki. Lorraine appeared in twenty-eight films ...

as German-language interpreter *

Raymond Francis Raymond Francis (6 October 1911- 24 October 1987) was a British actor best known for his role as Detective Chief Superintendent Tom Lockhart in the Associated-Rediffusion detective series ''Murder Bag'', ''Crime Sheet'' and ''No Hiding Place''. ...

as Officer on towing submarine *

Walter Gotell Walter Jack Gotell (15 March 1924 – 5 May 1997) was a German actor, known for his role as General Gogol, head of the KGB, in the Roger Moore-era of the James Bond film series,Tom VallancObituary: Walter Gotell ''The Independent'', 20 June 19 ...

as German officer on Tirpitz (uncredited)

Production notes

The screenplay was based on the book ''Above Us the Waves'' by

C. E. T. Warren Lieutenant (British Army and Royal Marines), Lieutenant Charles Esme Thornton Warren Order of the British Empire, MBE (1912–1988) was a bestselling United Kingdom, British author, a World War II, Second World War Royal Navy submariner, and one ...

and James Benson, which had been published in 1953. Director Ralph Thomas says the film was made because producer William MacQuitty "was very involved with the Navy and he loved submarines." MacQuitty had a production company in partnership with

Sydney Box Frank Sydney Box (29 April 1907 – 25 May 1983) was a British film producer and screenwriter, and brother of British film producer Betty Box. In 1940, he founded the documentary film company Verity Films with Jay Lewis. He produced and co-wro ...

called

London Independent Producers London Independent Producers was a British film production company. It was founded in 1951 by Sydney Box and William MacQuitty. Box had recently been head of production of Gainsborough Pictures, part of the Rank Organisation. After Gainsborough w ...

, which tended to use the same core creative personnel. They purchased film rights in 1952, before the book had been published. The book became a best seller, selling over 350,000 copies and MacQuitty obtained finance from the

Rank Organisation The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment conglomerate founded by industrialist J. Arthur Rank in April 1937. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the United Kingdom, owning production, distribu ...

under Earl St. John. The British admiralty provided full co-operation. Thomas was given the job of directing after his tremendous success with ''

Doctor in the House ''Doctor in the House'' is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty Box. The screenplay, by Nicholas Phipps, Richard Gordon and Ronald Wilkinson, is based on the 1952 novel by Gordon, and follows a group of st ...

''. Several of the cast from that film would appear in ''Above Us the Waves''. Shooting began on 20 September 1954 in

Guernsey Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency. It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...

. Commander

Donald Cameron Donald Cameron may refer to: Scottish Clan Cameron * Donald Cameron of Lochiel (c. 1695 or 1700–1748), 19th Chief, and his descendants: ** Donald Cameron, 22nd Lochiel (1769–1832), 22nd Chief ** Donald Cameron of Lochiel (1835–1905), Scott ...

, who commanded X-6 as a lieutenant and won the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

during the operation, was an adviser to the film. MacQuitty was an experienced diver, having spent over 500 hours under water. He personally supervised many of the underwater sequences. Events in the film had minor differences, for example, the boat ''Arthur'' that carried the Chariot human torpedoes was named ''Ingebord'' in the film, and the X-class submarines used in Operation Source in 1943 were numbered X-5, X-6 and X-7, and X-5 was the craft that was lost. The real X-3 was lost in an earlier training exercise although the crew escaped using Davis escape apparatus. The score was by

Arthur Benjamin Arthur Leslie Benjamin (18 September 1893, in Sydney – 10 April 1960, in London) was an Australian composer, pianist, conductor and teacher. He is best known as the composer of '' Jamaican Rumba'' (1938) and of the ''Storm Clouds Cantata'', f ...

and performed under the direction of

Muir Mathieson James Muir Mathieson, OBE (24 January 19112 August 1975) was a Scottish conductor and composer. Mathieson was almost always described as a "Musical Director" on many British films. Career Mathieson was born in Stirling, Scotland, in 1911. A ...

played an Australian. "Australians are husky types", said producer McQuitty. "Gregson has made his part of Alec Duffy, midget submarine commander, good and husky." "I am proud to be playing the part of an Australian", said Gregson. "During the war, when I was in the Royal Navy, I met many Australian fighting men. They were good fellows." Donald Sinden's character was based on the true-life exploits of Sub-Lieutenant Robert Aitken, who died a few weeks after Sinden. In his first autobiography, ''A Touch of the Memoirs'', Sinden said "I had to re-enact a deed originally performed by Commander Donald Cameron. While his X Craft was being towed across the North Sea, the cable picked up a floating mine which then moved along the cable and made straight for his midget. Cameron rushed forward and, lowering himself over the prow of his craft, managed gingerly to push the mine clear with his feet. Donald was our advisor on the film and told me modestly, "I couldn't think of anything else to do." He was awarded the VC. I wasn't because we used a dummy. But Donald could swim!"''A Touch of the Memoirs'' by Donald Sinden. Hodder & Stoughton Publ. (1982), pp. 209–10 The cast also included Anthony Wager, who had played a young Pip in ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

'' (1946). John Mills, who played the older Pip, appeared opposite him.

Reception

Box office

''Above Us the Waves'' was the sixth most popular film at the British box office that year, after ''The Dam Busters'', ''White Christmas'', '' Doctor at Sea'', ''

The Colditz Story ''The Colditz Story'' is a 1955 British prisoner of war film starring John Mills and Eric Portman and directed by Guy Hamilton. It is based on the 1952 memoir written by Pat Reid, a British army officer who was imprisoned in Oflag IV-C, Colditz ...

'' and ''

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers ''Seven Brides for Seven Brothers'' is a 1954 American musical film, directed by Stanley Donen, with music by Gene de Paul, lyrics by Johnny Mercer, and choreography by Michael Kidd. The screenplay, by Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich, and Do ...

''. It helped John Mills to be voted the fifth most popular star in the country. According to the

National Film Finance Corporation The National Film Finance Corporation (NFFC) was a film funding agency in the United Kingdom in operation from 1949 until 1985. The NFFC was established by the Cinematograph Film Production (Special Loans) Act 1949, and further enhanced by the ...

, the film made a comfortable profit.

References

External links

* *
''Above Us the Waves''
at Britmovie
Bute at War
– the role of the

Isle of Bute The Isle of Bute ( sco, Buit; gd, Eilean Bhòid or '), known as Bute (), is an island in the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, United Kingdom. It is divided into highland and lowland areas by the Highland Boundary Fault. Formerly a constituent isl ...

in "Operation Source". A comprehensive account of the audacious X-Craft raid on the Tirpitz, planned and executed from the naval on-shore base in

Port Bannatyne Port Bannatyne ( gd, Port MhicEamailinn) is a coastal village on the Isle of Bute, Firth of Clyde, Scotland that is home to many steamers. Port Bannatyne developed into the 1900s as a quieter and more unusual alternative to Rothesay. It is a pop ...

. {{Ralph Thomas 1955 films 1955 war films British war films Films directed by Ralph Thomas Films shot at Pinewood Studios British black-and-white films Royal Navy in World War II films Seafaring films based on actual events World War II films based on actual events World War II submarine films 1950s English-language films 1950s British films