TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

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Unknown74
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TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Unknown74 »

Do Airshow Organisers often play TV or Film Themes for various Aircraft Displays or is it just a few organisers who have that train of thought, I have heard The Thunderbirds Theme at RAF Mildenhall Air Fete for the USAF Thunderbirds in 1997 and in 2000 They played Mission: Impossible for the "Mildenhall Impossible Missions Force" (i.e The Special Ops Hercs and MH-53Js) Display at Air Fete 2000. I also at East Fortune one Year thought I heard James Bond Theme being played for the RAF EH-101 Merlin.

Any others?

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ted633
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by ted633 »

Unknown74 wrote:Do Airshow Organisers often play TV or Film Themes for various Aircraft Displays or is it just a few organisers who have that train of thought, I have heard The Thunderbirds Theme at RAF Mildenhall Air Fete for the USAF Thunderbirds in 1997 and in 2000 They played Mission: Impossible for the "Mildenhall Impossible Missions Force" (i.e The Special Ops Hercs and MH-53Js) Display at Air Fete 2000. I also at East Fortune one Year thought I heard James Bond Theme being played for the RAF EH-101 Merlin.

Any others?


Battle of Britain theme for the RR Spitfire display & 633 Squadron for the 1st pass of the BBMF (for some reason) at Fairford in 2009 are a couple i can think of off the top of my head. Sure there have been many others over the years though.

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

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Last edited by davidjones533 on Fri 17 Aug 2018, 2:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Stagger2
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Stagger2 »

That'll be the instantly Vietnam-linked 'Gimme Shelter' track from the Stones then!
"But straight into the top ten this week Theme from Harry's game, a song off Clannad's seventh album "Magical Ring"....forever associated with the Vulcan display?

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Dan O'Hagan
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Post by Dan O'Hagan »

ted633 wrote:
Unknown74 wrote:Do Airshow Organisers often play TV or Film Themes for various Aircraft Displays or is it just a few organisers who have that train of thought, I have heard The Thunderbirds Theme at RAF Mildenhall Air Fete for the USAF Thunderbirds in 1997 and in 2000 They played Mission: Impossible for the "Mildenhall Impossible Missions Force" (i.e The Special Ops Hercs and MH-53Js) Display at Air Fete 2000. I also at East Fortune one Year thought I heard James Bond Theme being played for the RAF EH-101 Merlin.

Any others?


Battle of Britain theme for the RR Spitfire display & 633 Squadron for the 1st pass of the BBMF (for some reason) at Fairford in 2009 are a couple i can think of off the top of my head. Sure there have been many others over the years though.


These were my doing. Airshows and some acts without music can be desperately dull. Most of the warbird displays we let speak for themselves, with neither commentary nor music.

That year, the wretched George Bacon was meddling in everything we did and tried playing what can only be described as some sort of hornpipe during Ben's masterfully-written Fly Navy set-piece and a Flamenco guitar track during the Spanish Hornet (I think) as he "volunteered" to fill in while our sound engineer took a well-earned break.

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by tuska2 »

That'll be the instantly Vietnam-linked 'Gimme Shelter' track from the Stones then!
Close, but "Jumping Jack Flash" with the lyric " I was born in a crossfire Hurricane " being appropriate!

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Ian G »

Elgar's Nimrod Variations for, erm, now what was it?

There's also "The Map Room" from Raiders of The Lost Ark which appeared for some aircraft.
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Andyperkins »

Was about to mention the Raiders tune as I remember hearing that when the B-2 used to flyby at RIAT.

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by County1884 »

Surely "paint it black" is the stones song most associated with Vietnam :whistle:

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Post by tuska2 »

A lot of Stones stuff from that era has been associated with the Vietnam war, and other artists too such as Hendrix, the Doors etc, but Sundays accompaniment
was indeed " Jumping Jack Flash ", worked for me! The Harry's Game theme really enhanced the Vulcan display during its RAF days, I agree. But Dodgy
generic rock? I'd rather hear Jet noise!

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Post by aaron0288 »

I remember to this day when I was about 10, at Mildenhall, possibly 99/00, and 'Take my Breath Away' came over the tannoy. Can't remember for the life of me what display was on at the time or even if there was one at all, and it was just being played during a rainy period. All I do remember, is my Grandad teasing me about what scene in Top Gun that song was from! As you can imagine as a 10 year old I went pretty red faced. :oops:

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Ouragan
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Post by Ouragan »

These days I cannot hear Mr. Blue Sky by ELO without thinking of the RAF King Air.

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by TIGER TIM »

Harry's Game was used at the shows, including the IAT, for the Vulcan Display Team post Op "Black Buck".

The Theme tune from Thunderbirds was used for a certain USAF display team.

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Post by Chrisse »

A certain UK commentator used Soul Bossa Nova (aka the Austin Powers theme for the younger generation) during the Breitling Wingwalkers, and thre Thunderbirds theme during the Belgian Seaking display. He had mojo!

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Wrexham Mackem
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Wrexham Mackem »

TIGER TIM wrote:The Theme tune from Thunderbirds was used for a certain USAF display team.


Was it? I only go back to the eighties with the Thunderbirds but every time I've see them and I'm certain its every performance they have their own soundtrack coordinated with the narrator and is a different ear-splitting song clip for each maneuvre. In fact, they have a very blinged up sound desk in a liveried trailer you'll no doubt spot at RIAT.

Best use of music I can remember goes to the 80's/90's Skyhawks RF-4 team, sometime sponsored by Unipart, flying to Pink Floyd's 'shine on you crazy diamond'. Neither on their own would have been that compelling but together worked very well. A Brendan O'Brien special. Even made it onto the IAT flying programme.

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Dan O'Hagan
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Dan O'Hagan »

Wrexham Mackem wrote:
TIGER TIM wrote:The Theme tune from Thunderbirds was used for a certain USAF display team.


Was it? I only go back to the eighties with the Thunderbirds but every time I've see them and I'm certain its every performance they have their own soundtrack coordinated with the narrator and is a different ear-splitting song clip for each maneuvre. In fact, they have a very blinged up sound desk in a liveried trailer you'll no doubt spot at RIAT.

Best use of music I can remember goes to the 80's/90's Skyhawks RF-4 team, sometime sponsored by Unipart, flying to Pink Floyd's 'shine on you crazy diamond'. Neither on their own would have been that compelling but together worked very well. A Brendan O'Brien special. Even made it onto the IAT flying programme.


Yes, the Unipart team were a great example of how choreography to music can enhance even the dullest types, see also Leon Creese's use of Mister Blue Sky.

For me, the Reds desperately need to add music to their routine. Ditch the current ghastly, nauseating, plummy "ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls" commentary, and take a leaf from the book of Europe's two best national teams, the French and Italians, both of whom use music to some extent during the display, without becoming a parody like the American acts.

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Wrexham Mackem
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Wrexham Mackem »

That's a great debate though - what music would you use to soundtrack the Red Arrows?

I've thought about it from time to time, and its a tough one. There's nothing divides people like music. I agree Dan, I think music would enhance the display, but we haven't got nationally identifiable pieces with quite the universal appeal of Nessun Dorma have we?

I'm not sure we could even start with a consensus on the national anthem. We have a British one but everyone in Wales and Scotland sees it as English... oh I'm stuck already :dizzy: :smile:

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Bluebird Mike »

...and I'm amazed that no one has yet mentioned the Theme from Blade Runner by Vangelis, which has been used to death over the years, usually by A.N.Other aerobatic team flying a Pitts.

I think with the Reds, the established commentary format is just too important to them- say who is who, explain what they are doing, and get the message across- join the RAF, yay Great Britain, etc. Maybe though there could be just a section set to music of some kind, maybe in the middle or to build up to a big ending. It would certainly be interesting- under Monty they've had some great routines these last couple of years, and the right choice of tune/s would really enhance that even further.

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EGL
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Post by EGL »

Lee Lauderback displaying Crazy Horse 2 to the soundtrack from Empire of the Sun. One of the most memorable moments I've had at an airshow :biggrin:

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Post by Skyflash »

I defy anyone to listen to this and not think instantly of the Breitling Jet Team:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGfKMV5AbMI[/youtube]

:grin:
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by FarnboroJohn »

Wrexham Mackem wrote:That's a great debate though - what music would you use to soundtrack the Red Arrows?

I've thought about it from time to time, and its a tough one. There's nothing divides people like music. I agree Dan, I think music would enhance the display, but we haven't got nationally identifiable pieces with quite the universal appeal of Nessun Dorma have we?

I'm not sure we could even start with a consensus on the national anthem. We have a British one but everyone in Wales and Scotland sees it as English... oh I'm stuck already :dizzy: :smile:


I don't think the Red Arrows need a soundtrack but if you want to watch them with one, Arthur Gibson's film (1980?) used two tracks from a bunch called the ODS Band, one was "Fly" and I think the other might have been "Hypercharge". They were released as a single and Fly was played to death by Noel Edmonds. Its a good film.

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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by Skyflash »

Wrexham Mackem wrote:That's a great debate though - what music would you use to soundtrack the Red Arrows?

I've thought about it from time to time, and its a tough one. There's nothing divides people like music. I agree Dan, I think music would enhance the display, but we haven't got nationally identifiable pieces with quite the universal appeal of Nessun Dorma have we?

I'm not sure we could even start with a consensus on the national anthem. We have a British one but everyone in Wales and Scotland sees it as English... oh I'm stuck already :dizzy: :smile:


Billy Connolly's comments apply: the best possible British national anthem is the theme from 'The Archers'! :grin:

Actually, that would be perfect for a Red Arrows display: "Ladies and Gentlemen... the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Display team, the RED ARROWS"

tum-tee-tum-tee-tum-tee-tum, tum-tee-tum-tee-tum-tum... :whistle:
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by SPLAT »

Middle Wallop Ride of the Valkeries for the last massed approach , with the noise of all those rotor's too.

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Post by Brevet Cable »

Heard 'Cavatina' used for a number of different displays over the years, ditto 'Wooly Bully'.
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Re: TV and Movie Themes played at Airshows?

Post by SuperGuppy »

At Biggin Hill shortly after the Falklands War a Vulcan displayed to 'Mars' from Holst's Planet Suite. I thought it worked really well.

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